Moments after Fout was announced as the 2015 Greenon High School homecoming queen on Oct. 9, she tore off her crown and sash and ran back to the sidelines.
She had to kick off just a few minutes later for the Knights football team.
“She hands us her sash, crown and flowers and says ‘Take it, take it, I gotta go,’ ” said her mother Ginny Richardson. “It was an amazing moment.”
Fout, a four-year varsity defender on the Greenon girls soccer team, serves as the Knights kicker on both kickoffs and extra points.
“You don’t see too many homecoming queens who are also on the football team,” Greenon football coach Kevin Ferguson said.
Fout has five younger sisters between the ages of 6 and 13, all of whom play soccer, she said. She wanted to prove to them and to other girls that they can do anything they want, she said.
“They look up to me and know that they can do what they put their heart to,” Fout said.
In August, Fout decided to tryout for football before the end of her high school career.
“I was always too scared to do it before,” Fout said. “It was my last year, so I figured I might as well try it out.”
The football coaching staff welcomed Fout with open arms, she said. Kicker is the one position coaches evaluate year-to-year, Ferguson said, because you’re never quite sure who is going to fill it.
When Fout came out during two-a-days, Ferguson said she fit the position.
“She earned it and went out there and does her thing,” Ferguson said. “She does a good job for us. I was happy to see she got homecoming queen.”
Female kickers are becoming a norm in the male-dominated realm of high school football. In 2011, Shawnee kicker Carly Gregory became the first girl to score a point in the Ohio High School Athletic Association football state championships.
Several other schools have female kickers on their rosters, including Northwestern and Graham. After Greenon’s game with Shawnee, Fout snapped pictures with Braves sophomore kicker Alyssa Garberich.
“It’s a position whether you’re male or female, you can practice, pick up the traits and work at it, you can be successful,” Ferguson said.
With five daughters, Richardson never thought she’d have the chance to watch one of her children play football until a few months ago.
“It worked out well for me,” Richardson said.
Richardson wasn’t concerned with her daughter getting hurt on the football field after the coaches instructed Fout to sprint to the sideline after kicking the ball.
Fout sets a great example for her sisters and younger teammates on the soccer team, Richardson said.
“It’s really neat when people come up to me and tell me she’s an inspiration,” she said. “Her little sisters adore her. She has her own cheering section.”
Todd Fout said her daughter loves the camaraderie that comes with playing football, especially their pregame warmup. She was still waiting to convert her first extra point for the Knights, but that’s not the most important to her, Todd said.
“Just being a part of the team is the most important thing,” he said.
With just a few games remaining, Chloe Fout believes she would’ve came out for football a lot sooner.
“The boys are really supportive,” she said. “I didn’t they would include me, but they treat me just like one of them.”
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