HS football coach dad jokes that he won't take it easy on son on opposing team: 'I want to beat him'

MATAGORDA COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- Coach Wade Birchum attempted to keep his son from joining the family business.

"They all tried to say don't do this," Wade, who comes from a family of educators, spoke to ABC13.

Ryan Birchum went against his dad's advice and got into coaching.

"People that know my dad and me know we're kind of similar - both hardheaded," Ryan admitted.

After playing for his father at Tidehaven High School, Ryan is currently in his first year working at his alma mater.

"So far, it's been pretty great," Ryan said of his experience coaching at Tidehaven High School. "Just being able to learn from the coaches that I played for."

Ryan also helps out with the seventh-grade team. Thursday at Van Vleck, the Leopards' seventh-grade squad played Tidehaven. Tidehaven's high school varsity team hosts Van Vleck on Friday, which will feature bloodlines on opposing sidelines.

"It's almost an other-worldly kind of experience," Wade said of Friday's Van Vleck vs. Tidehaven game.

"I've had this game circled since the day I signed my contract at Tidehaven," Ryan revealed.

Under the Friday night lights, Van Vleck defensive assistant Wade Birchum will coach against his son - Tidehaven defensive assistant Ryan Birchum.

"I want to beat him," Wade said without hesitation. "I'm still the dad. I can still say, 'Hey, I'm your boss, I'm your father.'"

"Since kickoff is 7:30 p.m., every Friday at 7, I text my dad good luck. That text isn't going to happen this week," Ryan said.

While Ryan can avoid sending his father a text message this week, it'll be tough for him to ignore his father. See, they both live about 20 miles from Van Vleck High School. Yes, Ryan and Wade share a house.

"This week, I've just been going home and hanging out in my room," Ryan said of the interactions between his father and him leading up to the game.

Their house may be divided this week, but there's a whole lot of pride in Wade's voice when talking about his family's coaching connection.

"I cannot be any prouder, as a father, than to have this opportunity," Wade said of his first chance to coach against his son. "As a dad to say, 'Hey, here's my son. That's just a neat thing.'"

In fact, Ryan didn't listen to his father when he tried to steer him away from coaching. For one night only, Wade hopes his son may have also tuned out the football lessons he taught him along the way.

"Yeah, that's what I'm hoping - that he'll forget some things," Wade said. "Hey, you didn't learn all of it!"

Undefeated Tidehaven hosts Van Vleck at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

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