Haley Bolaños Becomes First Female On Football Coaching Staff at Roswell High
When Haley Bolaños walked onto the practice field this fall as the new freshman offensive and defensive line coordinator at Roswell High School, a few players probably did a double take. A woman coaching football at Roswell? That had never happened before.
But for Bolaños, a Roswell native and proud Coyotes alum, the opportunity was both humbling and energizing. “Moving home was one of the best decisions I’ve made,” Bolaños said. “It’s a certain pride you feel being back at Roswell High School.”
Bolaños didn’t start her career in football. After earning her teaching degree, she began working in Albuquerque. Her coaching career would take her to the volleyball court and golf course, helping lead students in both sports. She returned to Roswell a few years ago for a volleyball job and a PE position at her alma mater. Football, however, had always been in the background.
“I didn’t play football, but I can say I was born and raised around it,” she explained. “My dad played and coached at Goddard High School, my uncle is a head coach as well, my brother is on the team now, and my other brother also played. Football has been around, and now it’s just taking all that information and transferring it to the field.”
Breaking Barriers
Roswell head coach Jeff Lynn approached Bolaños with the idea just before the school year started. “A few weeks before school started, Coach Lynn came to me and said, ‘Let me tell you what I got and you can tell me what you think.’ He gave me an opportunity to work with his staff, under his leadership, and develop his student-athletes. He believed in me. I appreciate his confidence in me, and I want to live up to his expectations.”
Her appointment puts her among a small but growing group of women coaching high school football in New Mexico. At Piedra Vista High School, for example, Lacey Fitzgerald is also helping pave the way. “I don’t know if I’m a trailblazer,” Bolaños said. “But if I can be an inspiration to any person out there, then go do it. Give it your all and you’ll have no regrets about it.”
Finding Her Voice
Bolaños admitted that stepping onto the football field as a coach was intimidating. “I was nervous about being a coach, at first,” she said. “It’s so important to learn the X’s and O’s, but when you know how to build relationships with student-athletes, when you know how to show them that you care, everything else just falls in line.”
She has spent extra hours reaching out to other coaches and studying schemes to improve her football knowledge. “I spend a lot of time, on my own, reaching out to other coaches, just talking with them and picking their brain about things. I can truly say that I’ve gotten better every day.”
Her players, once uncertain, have quickly embraced her. “I think some of the kids were in shock, but once I got in there, we didn’t miss a beat. I told them I believe in them deeply and I’m going to push them to reach those expectations. I go out to practice every day and show them I have value. The kids are now asking me for help and asking me to watch film with them.”
Coaching Beyond the Game
For Bolaños, coaching isn’t just about wins and losses. “For me, it’s not about coaching a sport, it’s about building relationships with kids and preparing them for the future,” she said. “Less than 1% of the athletes in our state go on to play college athletics, so if I can help build their self-confidence and their skills to use in life, that’s what’s important to me.”
She knows her role goes beyond football. It’s about showing what’s possible. “I hope to let any young woman out there know that whatever you set your mind to, and your heart to, you can go get it done,” Bolaños said.
And though she never expected this path, she embraces it fully. When asked if she ever thought she’d be coaching high school football, she laughed: “No.” But now that she’s here, she’s exactly where she belongs.
