Female high school football player in Texas a game-changer

FORT WORTH -- A high school junior in Fort Worth, Texas is making history on the football field in what could possibly be a game-changer.

Reilly Fox is the first girl to play varsity football for R.L. Paschal High School, and she is the district's first female player in 15 years, reports CBS Dallas-Fort Worth.

On Saturday, Paschal's team made its way onto the field for the third game of the season and Fox was ready to go.

"Since I was little, I always liked playing football," she told CBS DFW. "I was always a tomboy, so I would always want to go play with the boys. And I wouldn't want to play with the girls."

CBS Dallas reports that when Fox proved she could consistently make field goals from more than 40 yards out, her coach knew he had found his new kicker.

"At some point in time, there's a big 'ol body going to be coming flying back there, and you just have to be fearless," coach Matt Miracle told CBS DFW. "And I think she's fearless."

Fox's little brother may be one of her biggest fans.

"It's really cool, and it feels really good to know that she can actually do it, which I knew she could, but it's really awesome," Paschal freshman Ryan Fox said.

But it could be her parents who are her biggest fans.

"Maybe things are changing somewhat," Karen Vermaire Fox, Reilly's mother said. "You know it's easier for women to lean in and come and do things that they normally wouldn't have been able to do."

"I have a daughter who's in seventh grade, and she's really excited," family friend Laurie Hill said.

"It was kind of exciting, seeing my friend out there," Paschal senior Cristal Porjon added. "That's really good."

Reilly Fox said she just feels like part of the team.

"It hasn't hit me that much that I'm like, 'Oh yeah, I'm a girl on a football team,'" she said. "It's just like, 'Oh, I'm a kicker on a football team. I just happen to be a girl.'"

Paschal beat Dallas Molina on Saturday 76-8.

CBS DFW reports that as for the future, Reilly has another sport in mind, too. She says her goal is to play Division I soccer, but she's open to college football if she gets the opportunity to do both.