Football Team Honors Coach, Father, Friend
After the passing of coach Curtis Given, the team plays with "CG" stickers on helmets.
By Katie Scripoch
After the passing of coach Curtis Given, the team plays with "CG" stickers on helmets.
By Katie Scripoch
After the unexpected passing of beloved football coach Curtis Given, the Pioneer Mustangs team dedicated their 2022-23 season to him by wearing “CG” stickers on their helmets in honor of him.
Head coach Eric Perry asked Given to join the coaching staff six years ago, when his eldest son Brenden Given started school at Pioneer. Stickers will remain on the helmet for the remainder of the season and for future seasons to come.
“Curtis was a very big part of the program and I wanted to make sure that anybody and everybody understood how much we miss him,” said Perry.
As they were both San Francisco 49ers fans, Given and Perry would often go to games together and have family barbecues. Not only was he a colleague, but he was a longtime friend to Perry.
“He was my right hand man, and he was the guy that I knew if I needed anything I could call and he would do it, it didn’t matter what it was, on or off the field,” said Perry. “He was a very good friend of mine, we had known each other before he came on board to coach football at Pioneer, through flag football because both of our kids played flag football together.”
Given had a huge impact on the football program, as well as many individual players. Kiran Belur, 12, felt supported by his coach as he mentored him to become a better guard and defensive end.
“He was the coach for my position and taught me almost everything I know about playing, and he always believed that I could be doing better, even when I didn’t,” said Belur.
Belur finds it important for everyone to remember Given as the person he was.
“I really like how CG can stand for “Coach Given” and “Curtis Given” at the same time, so no matter how you knew him, it represents him as a whole,” said Belur.
Wearing a sticker has become important to many of the players, helping them feel that their late coach is always with them, through every snap.
“He’s more than a coach. He’s a person who always had my best interest in mind. He supported me both on and off the field and always pushed me to achieve my goals,” said Minh Vo, 12.
Given’s son, Ryan Given, 12, finds it significant to remember his father because of how important football was to not only the team, but to him personally.
“We had put in so much time to make it to this point, and I could enjoy my life without realizing how he had impacted me and instilled values upon me,” said Given of his father.
His passion for the game didn’t just stop at Pioneer. Curtis Given frequently went above and beyond by giving the linemen additional opportunities throughout his time as a coach.
“He had a huge impact on the program. He was involved with a lot of different things and he always made sure that the kids were involved with those,” said Perry. “He worked with Vee Sports, which was a program that D-line and O-linemen would go to and he would drive all of the boys and was very big in that instrumental and getting our boys better every year.”
During hard times, Ryan Given is appreciative to the class of 2022 football players who supported him through difficult times, along with the rest of the team.
“Our helmets show the pride we have in representing this team and our talents, I feel like having a CG sticker on every player is the most amazing way we could show our pride of having had him as a coach and the pride of dedicating this and every other season we may play to him,” he said.
Head coach Eric Perry asked Given to join the coaching staff six years ago, when his eldest son Brenden Given started school at Pioneer. Stickers will remain on the helmet for the remainder of the season and for future seasons to come.
“Curtis was a very big part of the program and I wanted to make sure that anybody and everybody understood how much we miss him,” said Perry.
As they were both San Francisco 49ers fans, Given and Perry would often go to games together and have family barbecues. Not only was he a colleague, but he was a longtime friend to Perry.
“He was my right hand man, and he was the guy that I knew if I needed anything I could call and he would do it, it didn’t matter what it was, on or off the field,” said Perry. “He was a very good friend of mine, we had known each other before he came on board to coach football at Pioneer, through flag football because both of our kids played flag football together.”
Given had a huge impact on the football program, as well as many individual players. Kiran Belur, 12, felt supported by his coach as he mentored him to become a better guard and defensive end.
“He was the coach for my position and taught me almost everything I know about playing, and he always believed that I could be doing better, even when I didn’t,” said Belur.
Belur finds it important for everyone to remember Given as the person he was.
“I really like how CG can stand for “Coach Given” and “Curtis Given” at the same time, so no matter how you knew him, it represents him as a whole,” said Belur.
Wearing a sticker has become important to many of the players, helping them feel that their late coach is always with them, through every snap.
“He’s more than a coach. He’s a person who always had my best interest in mind. He supported me both on and off the field and always pushed me to achieve my goals,” said Minh Vo, 12.
Given’s son, Ryan Given, 12, finds it significant to remember his father because of how important football was to not only the team, but to him personally.
“We had put in so much time to make it to this point, and I could enjoy my life without realizing how he had impacted me and instilled values upon me,” said Given of his father.
His passion for the game didn’t just stop at Pioneer. Curtis Given frequently went above and beyond by giving the linemen additional opportunities throughout his time as a coach.
“He had a huge impact on the program. He was involved with a lot of different things and he always made sure that the kids were involved with those,” said Perry. “He worked with Vee Sports, which was a program that D-line and O-linemen would go to and he would drive all of the boys and was very big in that instrumental and getting our boys better every year.”
During hard times, Ryan Given is appreciative to the class of 2022 football players who supported him through difficult times, along with the rest of the team.
“Our helmets show the pride we have in representing this team and our talents, I feel like having a CG sticker on every player is the most amazing way we could show our pride of having had him as a coach and the pride of dedicating this and every other season we may play to him,” he said.