Fort Knox senior earns all-state football honorable mention, first in over a decade

Photo By Jenn DeHaan | During a 2021 regular season game, Fort Knox Middle High School senior Tristin Griffin dashes down the field toward the goal line. Griffin was the first Eagle selected for the Kentucky all-state team in  

FORT KNOX, KY, UNITED STATES

12.22.2021

Story by Jenn DeHaan 

Fort Knox

Jenn DeHaan | Fort Knox News

FORT KNOX, Ky. – Lightning rarely strikes the same place twice – unless you’re 17-year-old Tristin Griffin, and you’re creating the lightning yourself.

Last year, Griffin’s speed on the track led to his selection for the Kentucky all-state team. Now in his senior year at Fort Knox Middle High School, he has become the first Eagle in over 10 years to make all-state for football.

“I was really honored,” said Griffin. “It’s nice to be recognized for what you do and the work you put in, and to know the results you get actually matter.”

Griffin arrived at Fort Knox with his family halfway through his sophomore year from Fort Riley, Kansas. He said his passion for athletics began while in middle school.

“I first started playing sports in the seventh grade,” said Griffin. “I started in football, and then played in eighth grade as well. The sport I really stuck with, though, was track. Junior year, I ended up placing second in the state, and then made all-state.”

FKMHS varsity football coach Wes Arnold said it was seeing Griffin’s talent on the track that first got his attention. When Arnold considered how his speed could help the football team, he decided to take a more direct approach.

“I probably annoyed him his whole junior year,” Arnold said, chuckling. “I talked to him every single day about joining football; trying to recruit him because I knew he was a phenomenal track runner and just an incredible athlete.”

Once on the team, Arnold quickly realized Griffin’s talent was useful in a number of positions, having him play defensive back, receiver, kick returner, and even as the backup quarterback at times. Griffin, however, modestly put the spotlight on other teammates.

“We started the year in a tough situation,” said Griffin. “We lost our starting quarterback the day before our first football game, but we had our quarterback who was a sophomore step up and play the whole year, and he did really well.”

Thinking back on those early games, Griffin said he remembered how he felt then versus now.

“It was my first time playing [football] since the eighth grade, so I didn’t really know what to expect,” said Griffin. “Every game I just got more confident and started to realize I was getting better and better, and so did the team. We started off trying to find ourselves, and toward the end of the year we were a really good team.”

Arnold said it was a joy to watch Griffin’s abilities progress on the field.

“Everything he does looks so effortless,” said Arnold. “He’s so smooth, and his speed is just unbelievable. Once he gets into open space, nobody is going to catch him.

“As the season went on he became more and more comfortable. There were some games where he was just unstoppable.”

When it came time to submit nominations for the all-star game the Greater Louisville Football Coaches’ Association puts on each year, Arnold said he went to great lengths to ensure those making the selection knew just how talented Griffin was. He said in the past, the game has rarely included a player from FKMHS.

After watching him play successfully against some of the top players in the greater Louisville area on Dec. 12, Arnold was notified about Griffin’s selection as an all-state honorable mention winner. He said getting to share the news with one of his players was indescribable.

“That was such a cool moment,” said Arnold. “When I had got the email that morning, I was just so proud of him — then getting to call him into my classroom to tell him — it was just such a special moment for me. He’s the first kid I’ve ever coached to be on the all-state team.”

Griffin said he never expected that the familiar walk to his coach’s classroom that Friday morning would have such an extraordinary result.

“He calls me to talk to me about colleges all the time, so I just assumed it was something like that,” said Griffin. “It was definitely bigger than I thought!”

Arnold said it’s hard knowing he won’t have Griffin on his team again next year, though the chance to coach players like jersey number 10 is why he loves what he does.

“I wish I had 10 more like him,” said Arnold. “He’s a team-first guy. He was at every practice, he worked hard, he did what was best for the team, and he was kind of that rare breed of talent where he was probably our best player on the team — and he didn’t have an ego.

“He just showed up and worked hard every day.”

So far this season, Griffin has been selected for the all-star team, all-district first team as safety and receiver, and the all-state honorable mention. However, he could still receive another accolade when the all-area list gets released on Christmas Day.

Even with all his athletic commitments, Griffin currently holds straight A’s in all his classes at FKMHS. He said although his football success has been an incredible experience, he’s shifted his focus to what his next chapter looks like – applying to multiple colleges where he’s being looked at for both football and track.

Arnold said he doesn’t doubt that chapter is going to be an even greater one for Griffin.

“He’s going to be successful in whatever he does in the future because he’s that hard of a worker,” said Arnold. “He’s just a great person.”

• Date Taken: 12.22.2021
• Date Posted: 12.22.2021 12:37
• Story ID: 411780
• Location: FORT KNOX, KY, US