The Indiana Football Coaches Association named Brownstown Central coach Reed May as its 2025 Dave Land Coach of the Year.
May, 69, led Brownstown Central to its first state finals in program history this season. The Braves (14-1) lost 7-0 to Andrean in the Class 2A state finals. May ranks eighth all-time in state history with 326 wins (just 66 losses), all coming at Brownstown Central since he became the coach at the school in 1993.
During his time at Brownstown Central, May’s teams have won 23 Mid-Southern Conference titles, 15 sectional championships, four regional titles and one semistate championship. He was inducted into the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 2023.
May served as the IFCA president in 2012-13 and served as the IFCA committee co-chairman in 2011 that proposed a sixth class, the success factor and seeding to the IFCA committee. He has served on the IFCA ratings board and all-state selection committees for over 25 years.
May played at Bloomington South, where he played on teams that helped compile a 60-game winning streak and win the last mythical state championship in 1972. He played college football Michigan State and Arizona and went on to coach as an assistant in college, followed by stops at Owensboro (Ky.) and Perry Meridian, before he was hired at Brownstown Central.
Brownsburg’s Casey Popenfoose was named the Paul Loggan Assistant Coach of the Year by the IFCA. He has coached at Brownsburg for 10 years, serving as the defensive coordinator for the entirety of that tenure, helping the Bulldogs to a 96-19 record with two state championships, six Hoosier Crossroads Conference titles, four sectional championships and two regional and semistate titles.
Popenfoose’s defense allowed just 15.6 points per game this season, the program’s best defensive average since 2011, highlighted by a 31-0 win over Warren Central in the regional. The defense forced 20 turnovers on the season.
Popenfoose also leads the Brownsburg track and field program and works as a strength and conditioning teacher. Brownsburg won the 2023 state championship and finished in the top two on three occasions.
Coach of the Year by class
A: Chuck Sorrell, South Putnam
2A: Reed May, Brownstown Central
3A: Connor Simmons, Cascade
4A: Jason Garrett, Fort Wayne Dwenger
5A: Kyle Ralph, New Palestine
6A: John Hart, Brownsburg
Assistant Coach of the Year by class
A: Steve Berkshire, Pioneer
2A: Jeff Gutowski, Andrean
3A: Troy Edwards, Cascade
4A: Dan Knepper, Fort Wayne Dwenger
5A: Josh Sabinas, Merrillville
6A: Casey Popenfoose, Brownsburg
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649. Get IndyStar’s high school coverage sent directly to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter. And be sure to subscribe to our new IndyStarTV: Preps YouTube channel.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Brownstown Central’s May, Brownsburg’s Popenfoose honored by IFCA
Reporting by Kyle Neddenriep, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
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