Coaching in the Philadelphia area for 25 years, David Hand is no stranger to what it takes to make it on the gridiron.

Growing up in Southwest Philadelphia, the School of the Future's head coach came from a single-parent home in which he was raised by his mother and grandmother with his two brothers and sister.

Hand attended now-National football powerhouse St. Joe's Prep where he played football before playing in college at La Salle University. When Hand was a senior in high school, Cleveland Browns Head Coach Kevin Stefanski.

After injuring his knee for the second time in three years, Hand decided to stop playing football.

While still in school at La Salle, Hand's high school coach reached out to him and offered him a spot as a defensive backs and quarterback coach for The Prep. There, he would be reunited with Stefanski, this time as his coach in a year in which he would become the MVP of the league.

After coaching at The Prep and helping turn it into the well-known program it is today – St. Joe's developed a 55-game unbeaten streak in the regular season, four Catholic League Championships, and a No. 3 ranking in USA Today's High School Football Rankings during his time – Hand moved on and help build up Prep Charter and Bartram School.

Coach Hand's teams have made the playoffs 23 out of 25 seasons and when he took the job at School of the Future, the program was in need of resources.

Hand's continued relationship with Stefanski played a key role with the school, as the Browns' coach was generous enough to help the team out.

"Two years ago, we didn't have footballs, we didn't have jerseys. We didn't have a lot of things here at School of the Future," Hand said. "I put a call into him and asked if he could donate anything he had extra and he was so gracious. He sent us 30 brand new footballs and two huge NFL bags and Cleveland Browns gear."

Stefanski would jump on Zoom meetings to speak to the players about how to be successful and his own journey to the NFL.

In addition to Stefanski, Hand coached former legendary Eagles coach Andy Reid's son, Spencer.

"Andy and his wife did a lot for us. They brought us to Eagles games, gave us resources, and were very helpful with the program at Prep and they were great parents," Hand said. "The coaches at the Eagles were just great. They didn't look down upon us, anything we needed, they offered to us. They were just a great resource as a tool to help our program get better, help the kids get better, and grow from there, so they were absolutely great."

At School of the Future, Coach Hand has worked tirelessly to help his players on and off the field. Coming from an inner-city background, Hand understands the students and the extra work they have to put in to succeed.

When Hand began at the program, they had 17 kids on the team and were ranked 37th out of 37 high schools around the city.

Over the past three years, the team has finished in the top five in its league, reached the championship games of its division, and won two division titles.

"To see the success and the growth of the kids over the past three years has meant everything to me," Hand said. "The kids in the City of Philadelphia deserve to have a top-notch program with top-notch award ceremonies, travel to different 7-on-7 tournaments, and I try to give them the full experience that every kid should have."

As School of the Future currently sits at second in conference play at 3-1 and is preparing to take on Frankford tonight, Coach Hand shared the philosophy he has as a coach.

"If you want to be something, you want something, you have to go get it. Nothing's going to be handed to you in life, so I'm constantly trying to teach these kids to be a go-getter, to be accountable, hold themselves and their teammates accountable, and just grow from there as an individual," Hand said. "I try to teach them about family, and how football is a family, and trying to drive that motto that we bleed, we cry, we win, and we lose together. At the end of the day, we rely on each other, so that's kind of the motto I stress – family first and be a go-getter."

– Written by Liam Wichser