“This is a blessing,” said Jackson, with relief and pride clear in his voice. “There were days I wondered, ‘Are we going to make it?’
“Everyone knows we’re an art school — that’s always been our biggest hurdle. But to line up, to see my guys performing every day — I can do nothing but be happy and excited.”
Stivers football was dormant for years. The 1980s marked an era when Dayton’s public schools, including Stivers, pivoted toward arts magnet programs and also dealt with budget cuts and shifting student interests.
Attempts at fielding a high school team after that point never quite took root — until now.
The school’s identity for the visual and performing arts remained strong through the decades, creating a perception that sports didn’t belong.
But Jackson was undeterred.
“This is basically a first-year program,” he said. “I’ve got two seniors — that’s it. The rest are underclassmen, many playing organized football for the first time. And that’s exciting, because I’m molding a new tradition here.”
Dayton Public Schools board of education approved a restructuring of the athletics department and the potential revival of football at Stivers in May of 2024.
The moment arrived when the program could finally exist again.
Looking back, Stivers had moments of athletic prominence, though not always on the gridiron. The school’s glory days shone brightest on the basketball court, with state championships in the late 1920s and early 1930s that earned Stivers a place in Ohio’s athletic lore.
And in the 1930s, student athletes like George Eisen excelled in multiple sports — football, track, baseball — embodying the all-around spirit of early Stivers athletics and even captaining city championship football teams.
Such stories now serve as a reminder that Stivers once was a school equally at home on the court, the field and the stage.
Last week, what was once a dream was materialized — a roster of primarily underclassmen and many lacing up pads for the first time against the C4 Lions. The Tigers lost to the Lions 38-0 on Aug. 30 and fell at New Miami 32-8 on Thursday.
The offensive line — three freshmen, a sophomore and a junior — has already protected the quarterback well, allowing zero sacks through two games.
“Our quarterback can play,” Jackson said of sophomore Nazir White. “I’ve got three years with him, and he’s going to get better. We have a great receiving corps, too. There’s talent. We’re just working out the mental errors.”
Mistakes have come — penalties, stalled red-zone drives and missed opportunities. But Jackson frames them as the difference between a blowout and a contest, which is growth steeped in learning.
Nearly every Stivers football player also participates in the arts. Theater rehearsals, art projects, band performances — they balance that with tackling drills. It creates a dual identity rare among Ohio high schools.
“As an art school, that’s been our hurdle,” Jackson said. “But why can’t we excel in art and on the field? We’re building something that integrates both. Our players are more multidimensional.”
The return of football has revived long-lost fall rituals. Families, alumni and neighbors — some seeing Stivers football for the first time or after decades.
“This brings people together,” Jackson said. “Parents, grandparents, kids — it gives us something to rally around. That atmosphere, that rhythm — that’s Friday night in Ohio.”
This season is about experience, not wins, Jackson stated. With only two seniors, the Tigers expect to bring back a veteran core next year and more freshmen after them.
The promise lies in continuity and development for the OHSAA Division VI program.
“We’re laying a foundation,” Jackson said. “We’ll keep improving. Next year, it’ll be different with more experience.
“Seeing those kids in orange and black, under stadium lights, is something I’ll never forget. This is what it’s all about.”
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