Ashton Kutcher shows his commitment at Harvard-Westlake
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
The former 'That '70s Show' actor, a former high school football player in Iowa, is happy to be along for the ride as a freshman assistant.
For weeks, Nick Lenard and his teammates on the North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake freshman football team figured they might end up as some sort of reality-show punch line.
They didn't believe it at first when they were told that actor Ashton Kutcher was going to be one of their assistant coaches. Their doubts intensified when Kutcher didn't show up for the first day of practice and again when they spotted cameramen jostling in the bushes along Coldwater Canyon last week during the Wolverines' first game.
Sure enough, in the locker room after Harvard-Westlake's season-opening victory, Kutcher eyed the players and proclaimed, "They just got punk'd."
They were relieved to find out he was kidding.
"We all started laughing," said Lenard, the Wolverines' pint-sized kicker.
It turns out the joke is on those who believe that the celebrity's involvement in the lives of 15 high school freshmen is just a publicity stunt. Kutcher was easily the most vocal and animated coach on the Harvard-Westlake sideline Friday afternoon during the host Wolverines' 14-0 victory over Lynwood.
Wearing black pants and the standard-issue white Harvard-Westlake polo shirt and cap, Kutcher was quick to offer encouragement and instruction. When Lenard returned to the sideline to lament that his first extra-point attempt had barely cleared the cross bar, Kutcher playfully tapped him on the chest and said, "Too close is right! Let's make it not that close again."
After Lenard's next kick cleared the bar by a comfortable margin, Kutcher raised his arms in triumph and said, "Way to get a little more height on it."
Kutcher did more than lead cheers. After Harvard-Westlake completed a defensive stand, Kutcher offered linebacker Evan Meister tips on technique, demonstrating movements as he backpedaled on the sideline. He later showed a group of players the correct way to tackle, bending his knees and lurching forward close to the ground.
"It's all about them, really," Kutcher said afterward. "I don't really do much. They come out here and do the work and I get to be along for the ride, and I'm happy to be here."
Kutcher came on board through a mutual friend of freshman Coach Scott Wood. He is paid a stipend like all Wolverines coaches, though Athletic Director Audrius Barzdukas said "calling it a paid position is definitely a stretch."
Asked why he wanted to help the Wolverines, Kutcher, 30, cited the words of a former Iowa State wrestling legend.
