On a normal Friday afternoon, things are buzzing around the Katy Cinco Ranch football facility. But Friday, Sept. 27, things were quiet since the Cougars didn’t play until Saturday. 

For parent Courtney Dycus, the off day didn’t mean an off day. Dycus spent the afternoon getting prepared for Saturday’s game.

“I’m washing and cutting up about 100 bags of fruit,” Dycus said.

The fruit will be delivered to the Cougars’ locker room at halftime – as it is each week. One of the Cinco Ranch’s missions for the season was to provide fruit for the players to eat at halftime. 

“She’s been instrumental in making sure we have fruit,” Cinco Ranch coach Chris Dudley said. “She’s done a great job of getting volunteers for everything we’re doing this year.”

Dycus serves as the parent coordinator for the Cinco Ranch volunteer corps. In that role, she’s helped find volunteers to take charge of two dozen committees that work behind the scenes for the football program. 

“We have a really active parent group,” Dycus said. “We have all of our positions filled. It’s been really great because that allows us to get what we need for the boys. The things we’re doing this year aren’t necessarily new things, but it really helps when we have everyone involved.”

The parents organize weekly dinners for the players. Dycus said as many as four families join together to host the weekly meals. Parents also work together to take care of other important details from ensuring that drinks and snacks are available at the football facility to making sure the concessions and merchandise areas are manned during games. There’s also a weekly newspaper that makes sure everyone knows what’s going on.

“Communication has been the key,” Dycus said. “We just tried to start early enough to make sure we had every position filled. And things are running smoothly.”

Her efforts to ensure that no leadership position has gone unoccupied haven’t been lost on the team.

“She does a great job of getting volunteers for everything from team dinners to selling programs and merchandise at the games,” Dudley said. “She has a big heart and her volunteer hours are very much appreciated. Our program couldn’t survive the way we want to run it without help from her and the others to make it a really good experience for our kids.”

It’s all part of supporting her two sons – Isaiah is a senior defensive lineman and a team captain and Zachary is a sophomore defensive end – and their teammates. 

“I just really like interacting with all of the boys and getting to know them,” Dycus said. “I like being around and identifying with the team.”