Willowbrook Girls Flag Football Head Coach receives IHSA Girls Flag Football Coach of the Year Award

Willowbrook is proud to share Rachel Karos, Head Coach of the Willowbrook Girls Flag Football Team, has been selected by the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) administrative staff as the recipient of the 2024-25 Girls Flag Football Coach of the Year Award.

According to a press release from the IHSA, “The selection to receive this prestigious honor was based upon the positive work (Karos) has done with the athletes in your program. Congratulations! We at the IHSA are proud to submit (Karos) to the National Federation of State High School Associations, who sponsor the award.”

Karos is now eligible to advance in the competition to receive recognition and honors at the sectional and national levels.

Karos is no stranger to women’s football and is a true pioneer for the sport, helping to enhance it throughout Illinois, the U.S. and internationally. She continues to guide the Willowbrook Girls Flag Football Team to success, and the group has made history of its own.

• In 2022, the team won the inaugural Chicago Bears Girls Flag Football State Championship and followed it up with a regional title in Ohio. In 2023 and 2025, they placed third at the state championship, solidifying their place as a top-tier program.
  
  
• In 2024, Karos was honored as the inaugural Chicago Bears Flag Football Coach of the Week.
  
  
• Karos is the backup quarterback for The Chicago Winds, a tackle football team in the Women’s National Football Conference (WNFC). She also plays flag football for the Chicago Mayhem.
  
  
• Karos was chosen as a coach for USA Football’s Select Bowl (along with Willowbrook Girls Flag Football Assistant Coach Nick Hildreth), which took place this past June.