HUNDRED — When his son entered the sixth grade, Jason Sleeth and his good friend Nathan Huggins decided to start a middle school football program at Hundred.

It took some time but in the third year, Sleeth and Huggins guided the eighth grade Hornets to a perfect season.

Now, Sleeth is benefiting from that experience as he was recently hired to become the new football coach at Hundred High School.

“I was raised in Hundred,” Sleeth said. “I lived there my whole life. I played football, baseball and basketball at Hundred. I’m a lifer there.

“My buddy Nathan and I played ball together. I graduated in 1995 and he graduated in 1996. Our boys are the same age so when they entered the sixth grade we started a middle school team. That was the one missing piece at Hundred was there was no feeder program. The first season we took our lumps and didn’t win a game. We didn’t score a touchdown until the last game of the season. The next year we won two games but the last season we went undefeated, which was really positive. The kids gained experience and learned the basics of the game. They grew to know the system and we beat Cameron 12-6 in a dog fight in our last game of the season. With this young group coming in and the strong returning starters we have already, the combination of the two will be great.”

Not only did the kids learn the basics of the game but they also learned the importance of hard work and believing in themselves, two principles that Sleeth will continue to teach as he embarks on his newest endeavor.

“One thing we stress harder than anything is hard work and effort,” Sleeth said.

“Nothing comes easy. Losing is easy but winning takes hard work, dedication and discipline. Coming from a small school — it’s getting harder to compete, so we are dedicating our time to these kids and teaching basic offense and defense. We’re excited about what we have coming up. We have a three-year returner coming back at quarterback and fullback. With the seniors, juniors and this young supporting cast, we will have skill, quickness and intelligence.”

Despite the high hopes, Sleeth isn’t putting too much pressure on the kids. He is simply helping them get better each and every day with the goal of capturing some wins in the process.

“We didn’t want to set any unrealistic expectations,” Sleeth said. “I think we’ll be competitive this year and we’ll improve game-by-game and we’ll win a couple of ball games. There are five or six games I believe we can win this year. Hundred has lost for a long time so we are wanting to change the mentality to make them believe in themselves. We’re driving that hard and being upbeat with them.”

Sleeth has a stellar support system himself. His wife Teresa has been by his side through it all and he admits that none of it is possible without her.

“My wife Teresa has always been there for me,” Sleeth said. “We coach football, baseball and basketball and we’re constantly working with the kids. That takes a lot of time away so the strong support of my wife goes a long way. We’re blessed with terrific parents and grandparents at Hundred to help grow the program at Hundred but I’m not where I’m at without my wife.”