Points scored by Jesuit kicker Noah McGough to benefit Men of Nehemiah

Jesuit senior kicker Noah McGough is raising pledges for Men of Nehemiah.

Noah McGough was just eight years old when he first began campaigning for his father. He tagged along to fundraisers and community events, and after Adam was first elected to the Dallas City Council in 2015, Noah became comfortable shaking hands and chatting with folks from the mayor to members of the Exchange Club to the guy complaining because his garbage wasn’t collected last week. At the Fourth of July parade, Oktoberfest and other community events, Lake Highlands became like the proverbial Cheers bar — everybody knew his name.

These days, Noah is senior kicker on the Jesuit Dallas football team. But he’s not just any kicker. Noah has been training with Chris Sailer, founder of the elite national Chris Sailer Kicking School. Last week, Sailer released the pre-season list of All-American High School Kickers for 2024. Noah is at the top of the list.

Last season, Noah was selected First Team All-State by the Texas Sports Writers Association and Special Teams Player of the Year for 7-6A. He was Special Teams MVP at Jesuit and Kohl’s All-American Kicker, among many other honors. His achievements are talent-based, but much of his success has resulted from good old-fashioned practice and hard work.

“I am grateful for all the experiences I have been able to have through football,” Noah told me. “Early morning practices, August Texas heat, working in the weight room, bus rides after a win and just working together with a team is something that I will remember forever. It is interesting to be part of Special Teams. Snapping, holding and kicking is not what most people think of when they think of football, but for those living in these roles, we know we have to be ready to come through for our team every single time we are called. I recognize that I have been given a gift to be able to kick and to be part of such a great team.”

If you’ve chatted with Noah for more than a minute, you know he’s a young man of strong faith. This year, he’s collecting pledges for every point he scores through the uprights, and he’ll donate those dollars to Men of Nehemiah, a Christian nonprofit which supports men whose lives have been torn apart by drug and alcohol addiction.

“I aways want to use whatever gifts I have been given to serve others,” Noah says. “If I can help support the Men of Nehemiah by kicking, I want to help as much as I can. I love worshiping with the guys, and I love witnessing the amazing life transformation happening through the MoN.”

You may support Noah’s effort by pledging here.

“Men of Nehemiah is special,” he says. “When I get to spend time with the guys, I always feel a sense of connection and an awareness of God’s grace and mercy. We all make mistakes, and we all struggle with sin and addiction in some way. Learning from the testimonies of so many helps me see how close we all are, and how we each need God’s grace every day.”

Noah knows it’s odd, in a way, to ask dedicated Wildcat football fans to cheer for a player on one of their team’s biggest rivals. During his sophomore year, in fact, he hit the winning field goal to defeat Lake Highlands 32-31.

“Lake Highlands is my home,” says Noah. “I have grown up with so many friends and families I love. Through my dad’s service, I got to attend meetings, knock on doors during campaigns, advocate for big projects like rec centers, aquatics centers and libraries. It is hard to line up on the visitor side of the field once a year at the Boneyard, but the relationships I get to have are stronger than a once-a-year rivalry. I know how giving and supporting the Lake Highlands community is, and I am hopeful that Lake Highlands will join this cause and support the MoN even if a few of my kicks will be against the home team. I also hope the Jesuit community will join this mission, and we can all celebrate the impact we get to have in so many families’ lives and restoration.”

Noah believes the funds raised will have a big impact, but he’s not ready to stop there. He wants to bring students together — on and off the field.

“I just want to ask people to look for ways to use their gifts to impact the lives of others. With all the division in our world, serving others should and can be something that brings us all together. Anyone can pledge just a couple dollars per point and have a direct impact in the lives of others. And I hope it makes it more fun for people to come out and support the kicker, snapper and holder. We are all on the same team in this way. I have helped start a group of young leaders called 1613 Leaders. It is based on 1 Corinthians 16:13 that calls us to ‘Be on alert, stand firm in the faith, be courageous and strong’ and verse 14 says to ‘Do everything in love.’ We want to live out this verse through everything we do, including playing football. I hope to bring players from teams on both sides to pray before and after every game this season. We are going to play to win every game, but we are going to work to remember that we are all on this journey together.”

Noah isn’t sure yet where he’ll study next year, but he plans to pursue a degree in business and entrepreneurship. He’s met with coaches at Duke, OU, Texas, UNC, NC State, Tulsa and Indiana, but the whirlwind of changes in college recruiting have left him focused instead on playing the game of football – for now.

“The right situation will present itself,” he says, “and I will be ready when it does.”