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Aspen High School hires Eric McCready as new head football coach for 2022 season

Eric McCready has been hired as the new head football coach for Aspen High School.
Graphic courtesy of Aspen High School

Eric McCready has been named the new head football coach for Aspen High School, it was announced Thursday evening by AHS athletic director John Castrese. He has spent the past three seasons as the wide receivers coach and special teams coordinator for the Skiers under former head coach Travis Benson.

“I have tremendous respect for the job Travis has done over his many seasons as the head coach,” McCready said in a news release issued by Castrese. “He built a solid foundation for the program with his incredible ability to connect with the players and show them how much he cared for them as individuals. That is a foundation I can build on as the next head coach at Aspen.”

A native of Kansas who attended Cherry Creek High School in Englewood, McCready played collegiately at the University of Colorado, graduating from CU in 2001 with a degree in business marketing. He was a wide receiver and special teams standout for the Buffs, finishing his career with 38 catches for 435 yards and two touchdowns.



He signed as a free agent with the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles, but a knee injury suffered in training camp quickly ended his professional career.

After moving to Atlanta to work for a private business outside of football, McCready returned to CU when he was 27 to serve as a graduate assistant coach for two years. He then spent a decade helping coach at Fairview High School in Boulder. He also worked with the Denver Broncos for a spell as one of the team’s “ball boys.”




McCready is married to the former Ellen Falender, who was a standout multi-sport athlete for Aspen High School who went on to play soccer for CU. They currently have two kids, 6-year-old Scott and 2-month-old Max.

Benson resigned from his post after the fall season. A 1995 AHS graduate, Benson returned to his alma mater as head coach for two seasons beginning in 2005. Then, in 2018, he was rehired as the team’s head coach, replacing Karson Pike, who left to take a coordinator position at NCAA Division II Bemidji State University in Minnesota.

Benson finished 16-19 in his second stint leading the Skiers, making the playoffs in both 2018 and 2020. AHS finished 3-6 this past fall and did not make the postseason.

acolbert@aspentimes.com

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