On Dec. 4, 2023, Jason Kradman, Jupiter High varsity football coach, celebrated the winning of the Lou Groza Coach of the Year Award.
Kradman has always enjoyed living in Florida, and saw great opportunities for both him and his family by moving. With being the head coach at previous schools such as Miami Beach High School and continuing to schools in the suburbs of Chicago, he felt he had a lot to bring to the table at JHS.
“I grew up in Coral Springs and went to Terra Bella High School there and then went to college in Iowa at Drake University. After two years I graduated in Gainesville at the University of Florida,” Kradman said. “Jupiter was always a great area so when the [coaching] opportunity presented itself, I took it.”
With twenty years of coaching experience, Kradman has applied his techniques to lead Jupiter’s football program to a district championship.
“I was the head coach at Miami Beach High School, which was my first head coaching job, and then I was head coach at two high schools in the suburbs of Chicago,” Kradman said. “[Jupiter High] beat Dwyer for the first time in 25 years and then we beat Gardens for the first time in about 20 years.”
Coaching wasn’t the plan at first for Kradman; even with his love for the sport, his original intentions were along the lines of the medical field.
“Originally, I wanted to get into sports medicine or become a doctor, and after that didn’t work out, [coaching] was my way of staying around the game. Working with student athletes and just trying to help prepare them for life after high school. I always had great coaches growing up so this was kind of my way of paying it forward,” Kradman said.
On and off the field, Kradman plays an important role for his student athletes, encouraging them to always strive for the best in everything they do.
“[Kradman] stepped up a lot, he was new to the program and we weren’t doing that well last year, but this year we went on and won the district championship and beat Dwyer and a bunch of important games. He’s just inspired me to not take stuff for granted and just do everything to make the best of a situation,” Jack Costello, senior center, said. “Even after every football season he still keeps in contact with us, he always tells us if we need anything he’s there to help us out.”
Kradman celebrates the football staff as he acknowledges their hard work, determination and support. He cherishes being the recipient of this annual award and is proud to be recognized by many newspapers and reporters.
“It’s cool to be recognized but as I was saying to the reporter of the Palm Beach Post, it’s really more of a program award and the staff award,” Kradman said. “Just because I’m the head coach I get recognized, but really we wouldn’t have been able to do this without our student athletes, and without our players performing above and beyond their potential. Our coaching staff did an unbelievable job putting those guys in position to be successful.”
Despite facing many obstacles, Kradman remained hopeful in the team’s season outcomes and didn’t let anything get in his way of building a strong and passionate group of athletes.
“There’s always adversity when you take over a new program. The main obstacles were just starting to install the different schemes and processes that we felt like we could be successful with adapting to. New facilities, personnel and things of that nature but the administration here has been fantastic and everyone here has been really supportive,” Kradman said.
Kradman stays involved on and off the field. Being a teacher and coach, he balances being a leader to his students as well as a leader to his team.
“Kradman teaches weightlifting and he works hard to heighten the school’s image and how students and players carry themselves,” Enmanuel Rodriguez, junior and varsity football player, said. “He’s a hard working coach that strives to get his players the best chance of getting into a good school and he encourages us to work hard in the classroom.”
Kradman works hard to set a constant reminder of being the best version of oneself and striving for over achieving goals.
“He’s a father first and he’s a leader for our program. He was a great role model for these kids to look at and I’m very proud to coach with him,” Doug Uccelini, teacher and coach, said.
