Football at Illiana Christian is Literally a Miracle

DYER -- The idea had been floating around for years.
Literally.
Could a small, private Christian high school build and support a football program?
How could such an expensive sport, dependent on a healthy enrollment and a steady stream of athletes, work at a place like Illiana Christian?
“It came up every year,” said Darren DeBoer, who has been the school’s athletic director for 12 years. “When we were in Lansing, the facilities were landlocked. Our enrollment was declining. So playing football at that time wasn’t doable.”
The school, established in 1945, built its new campus in rural Dyer in 2018.
That’s when the whispers about football started getting louder.
Enrollment is now around 700. Fundraising, facility upgrades, more fundraising and, perhaps most importantly, making sure the student body supported football were all aspects DeBoer had to juggle.
“We did not want other fall sports to lose athletes to football,” DeBoer said.
Then, in the fall of 2024, the announcement was made.
Football was coming to Illiana Christian.
There was excitement throughout the administration.
Then DeBoer walked into the first call-out meeting.
“There were nine kids there,” DeBoer said with a laugh. “I was sweating.”
Last fall, the Vikings played their first junior varsity season. They had 50 students put on the pads.
Yes, there was still work to do.
But when the Vikings played their first JV game against Bishop Noll, 3,000 fans came out to support the team — and the idea.
FieldTurf was installed in 2024. Then former Washington Township strength and conditioning coach and Griffith offensive line coach Sam Kessler was hired as the school’s first football coach.
Suddenly, there was tremendous momentum.
“Even though I was a little nervous after that first meeting, I knew football would take off here,” DeBoer said. “Sam has been great. We have 70 kids out this year. We’re building a feeder program. Very few of our kids had ever played before.”
They started middle school football programs at Highland Christian and Crown Point Christian.
They started flag football for sixth- through eighth-graders, with more than 100 student-athletes participating.
Illiana also has a girls flag football team this year, following a trend that continues to grow throughout Indiana.
And this school year marks the Vikings’ first in the Northwest Crossroads Conference, a very strong football league.
“Some said I’d have a tough time getting Christian young men to be violent,” Kessler said. “But they’ve handled that pretty well. They are learning that getting up after being hit, fighting through a competitive battle and getting through that will help them in the classroom, on the field and in life.”
Next year, the Vikings will begin varsity football.
Consequently, Illiana competed only in varsity scrimmages this past summer. The road is long and bumpy in this sport. It takes time.
But the school’s community is embracing the idea with great joy.
They had a tailgate at one of this year’s JV games, complete with a beanbag tournament and a whole lot of great food.
Then, out on the field, the Vikings battled Chicago powerhouse St. Rita down to the wire before losing 20-16.
Junior Cade DeJong is a 6-foot-7, 270-pound offensive lineman who has an offer from Miami University of Ohio without ever playing a varsity game.
“I’ve played football for six years,” DeJong said, explaining his unusual path on this roster. “All my family went here (Illiana), so I was going to play at Calumet Christian first and then transfer to Crown Point. But when we started football, I was happy to stay here.”
There are a handful of seniors playing JV football for the Vikings.
For them, it was either this or nothing.
Senior Seth Striggow played football for one year when he was 12. But he said his mother encouraged him to stop.
“The whole concussion protocol thing,” he said. “So I played soccer. I didn’t play last year, but I came to a lot of the games. I fell in love with it. I like the night games. The adrenaline it gives you is amazing. There is nothing holding you back.
“I wish I could be here next year when we’re varsity. But I’m happy I can at least do this.”
Teammate Jackson Bandstra, also a senior, had never played football until last year.
And he didn’t even watch it.
“I didn’t even watch it,” Bandstra said of football on television. “Last year, a big dude hit me pretty hard. That was rough. I really didn’t like it. But now I enjoy the contact. I feel confident. We fought hard. We’re learning the game.
“The (St. Rita) game showed us we have a lot of work to do. Our offense didn’t move the ball. But we want to show everyone that Illiana can compete in football. I can’t wait to see where we go from here.”
That, right there, is what this story is about.
This whole thing is a little bit of a miracle.
From starting with nine athletes at that first call-out meeting to teaching players what a defensive back is, to getting pounded by Andrean last year, to competing with St. Rita last week — it’s going to be fascinating to see where this goes.
Playing a varsity schedule in the NCC next year will provide a much better indication of where this program, and this idea, stands.
My guess, however, is these Vikings are going to be pretty good.
One day.

Steve Hanlon
Heartland Sports Network