Chris Eaton
Just three years ago, Crismon became the third, and most recent, high school to open in the Queen Creek Unified School District. The Rattlers will be on their third head coach in three years when the 2025 season gets started, but there is optimism with the hire of Scott Hare this month (pending board approval on Feb. 4).
“I was highly impressed by Coach Hare’s energy and philosophy,” Crismon athletic director Tyler Montoya said in an e-mail interview. “It is evident that he is fully committed to the Rattlers and ready to contribute to the success of our program at Crismon. Additionally, his extensive coaching experience speaks volumes about his capability and expertise. We are excited to welcome Coach Hare to our team and confident that he will achieve great things with our student-athletes.”
Hare will be making a return to the state of Arizona. He got his start in coaching at the young age of 23 in 2001 as the head coach of Stevenson HS, a boarding school in Pebble Beach, Calif. After spending eight years as the head coach of Spanish Springs HS in Reno, he came to the state and led Mesa High’s program for two years. Hare was then the athletic director at Mesquite HS before taking the head coaching position for three seasons. During that run, the Wildcats won back-to-back 4A championships. Hare has been at Eastlake HS in Washington the past two years (15-7 record).
“I’m going through a reduction of force,” Hare said. “The school is going from seven periods to six and doing layoffs.”
With his teaching position going away at the end of the semester, and with family in Arizona including two kids that go to Arizona State, it was natural to look for a return to State 48.
“As jobs opened, I looked into a few of them,” Hare said. “Everybody I talked to about Crismon, there was nothing but positivity. The words ‘gold mine’ came up a ton. It made me look into it more.”
Crismon High School would like to announce the recommendation of Scott Hare as the Head Coach for 🏈 Crismon Football. Coach Hare led Mesquite to back-to-back 4A state titles in 2019 & ‘20 and brings a wealth of experience to our program. #CrismonHS #QCUSDathletics #QCleads pic.twitter.com/t0MPRZ1IAI
— Crismon Athletics (@CrismonRattlers) January 16, 2025
Crismon opened with freshmen and sophomores only and played a combination Frosh & JV schedule in 2022 (going 6-3). However, the move up to varsity proved to be difficult with no seniors on the roster. The Rattlers went 0-10 and scored just 71 points all season. Year Two of varsity (in 2024) went much better as CHS went 5-2 in its last seven games to finish the year at .500.
“There is absolutely a sense of excitement surrounding our program at the moment,” Montoya said. “Our athletes and community have experienced a taste of success on the field, and we certainly want to experience more of that. Finishing the season with a 5-5 record reflects the significant progress we made last year, and I know we would love to have another shot at some of those early season games. I firmly believe we evolved into a stronger, more cohesive team as the season progressed, and there is genuine enthusiasm about what the future holds for us. ”
Crismon has an enrollment of 1,216 and while its other sports are currently competing at the 4A level (based solely on enrollment), the football team is remaining in the 3A Conference for the next two seasons. This could prove to be the catalyst to win more games as the program increases its participation numbers.
“I think the pieces are there right now to be successful,” Hare said. “As the school continues to grow, we can continue to have success as we get more kids and move up levels. I honestly think we can be successful immediately.”
The winning began in Week 4 with a thrilling home victory over Gila Ridge. With the Hawks driving late in the game, sophomore Kresean Boyd stripped the ball away and returned it 98 yards to put away a 39-27 win.
Heartbreaking scenes for Gila Ridge on the road.
Hawks down 5, less than a minute left.
Crismon stripped the ball from GR on 1st and goal, resulting in a 95-yard return.
The Rattlers get their first win in school history.
Special thanks to @Jameskuz for the video. pic.twitter.com/WjXJ8SSieE
— Yuma Sun Sports (@YumaSunSports) September 14, 2024
When Hare left his head coaching position at Mesquite, it was to complete his doctorate, which he earned in Sports Leadership. He researched various leadership styles for his dissertation.
Hare will have some coaches coming with him from both his Mesquite and Mesa days for the new staff. He said his brother, Cory, will have a role as well. Hare plans to look at teachers who are on campus that are coaches. His main goal is to keep the guys there that want to be a part of the program. Hare also noted that someone with a state championship in his past will be on the staff also.
He is under contract to continue teaching in Washington for the time being (and for the remainder of the semester). However, Hare said he will definitely be at Crismon for Spring Ball this May.
This fall, Hare will be teaching at Crismon full time. The school will be continuing its football academy class, which is two periods back-to-back. In the fall, it includes practices, weightlifting, and film. It is used to improve players’ skills both mentally and physically.
In addition to simply having an extra year of experience and returning practically the entire roster, one of the benefits seen in the Rattlers in 2024 was with the members of the team getting bigger and stronger.
“Our biggest problem our first year is we were young and small,” Crismon safety Cameron Pope said in an e-mail interview. “We drastically improved our size and strength and we all had gotten older. My biggest improvement was my weight. I put 25 pounds on in the offseason and I had gotten a lot stronger. I also became more of a leader on the field and in the weight room.”
Pope, a sophomore, has started on varsity both of his years at Crismon. Last season, he had 56 tackles, two sacks, and an interception while being named to the Second Team All-3A Central Region at defensive back.
While Hare will help the school develop some new traditions, one that the Rattlers are going to keep is Cow Chip Bingo. It’s a community event where people purchase a square in a big field. When the squares are sold, two cows venture out and when they do their business, recipients of those “lucky” squares win prizes. Last year, those included a dirt bike, an autographed Brock Purdy jersey, and a smoker.
Heading into his junior year, Pope is excited about doing some more winning while also having the team earn some respect from schools and fans across the state not yet familiar with the new kids on the QC block.
“The biggest thing I’m looking for in the 2025 season is obviously, a state title,” Pope said. “I also want these other schools around the area to look at us more than the little brother and take us seriously. Crismon football will be something big.”
While Mesa and Mesquite were established programs before Hare arrived, there isn’t much history at Crismon. It’s a place where he and the new staff get to start with a clean canvas and paint the picture they want to see. There will also be hard work involved for both the coaches and the players as they dig deep to find that gold mine of riches.
“I’m excited about the opportunity,” Hare said. “I’ve been all over the map at different schools. When you have the opportunity to put your footprint on the mat, it’s exciting to do. This is something that they may still be doing traditions years from now that we establish now.”
Reach Chris Eaton at gridironarizona@yahoo.com or DM at @gridironarizona with story ideas.
