When John Klekamp takes over the Wright City football program and begins coaching games this fall, he will bring with him a lot of familiarity.
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When John Klekamp takes over the Wright City football program and begins coaching games this fall, he will bring with him a lot of familiarity.
The familiarity will exist for both the returning Wright City players, as Klekamp served as an assistant for the Wildcats during last season’s 7-3 campaign, and for the coach, as he takes over one Eastern Missouri Conference program after coaching another – Montgomery County – for 15 seasons.
Klekamp succeeds Tyler Rickard, who was recently hired to be the school’s athletics director.
Junior-to-be Jayden Henke raved about the familiarity the returning Wildcats will have with Klekamp.
“It’s a trust thing for us, he’s a great coach,” Henke said. “He’s improved me, overall, as a player. The trust that we’re going to have with him because we already know him is (important). We know we’re going to have to work hard to get to where we want to be.”
Klekamp, who amassed a 67-86 record in his 15 seasons at Montgomery County, said that maintaining the upward trajectory of Wright City football started under Rickard is the goal.
“I truly feel blessed to be here,” Klekamp said. “A year ago, when I took the job, I just wanted to do whatever was best for Coach Rickard and the program. I don’t know that the goal changes; I’m just in a different position. For me, the goal is to build on the momentum that coach Rickard’s got going on here.”
The coach added that the upward momentum started by Rickard has very little to do with wins and losses, or offensive and defensive statistics; it’s about character.
Klekamp said that if the right character goals are met, great things will be achieved, regardless of what the scoreboard says.
“For me, it’s about using football as an avenue to teach kids how to be better men,” Klekamp said. “Wins and losses come and go, and we learn a lot more from our losses than we do from our wins. One of the things I’ve talked with this group about is to learn to be humble. It’s much easier to learn to be humble than to be humbled. I’m real big on respect, effort and discipline.”
The coach said that over the summer, Russellville and Hermann will hold joint practices with the Wildcats at Wright City. Wright City will also head to North Point for a joint practice.
“First and foremost, we lose a great group of seniors – not just good football players but really good boys,” Klekamp said. “They’re going to be missed and that may open up a lot of holes but also (open up) a lot of opportunities. A lot of opportunities to be contributors. We’ve got a real strong sophomore class. Sneakily, we have a small but great group of juniors who are going to be seniors for us, so we’re excited for that group. We’re going to lean a lot on those two upper classes.”
Rickard said he’s excited to see the program in good hands as it transitions to Klekamp’s leadership.
“I think it will be a seamless transition for our players, coaches and the parents,” Rickard said. “They’ve all gotten to know Coach K over the last year and he’s been a blessing to our school and program.”
According to the MSHSAA website, Wright City is scheduled to open the 2026 football season at 7 p.m. on August 28 at Warrenton.
