Kim Royston has played both sides of the Minnesota-Wisconsin football border battle
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Kim Royston is now the assistant principal at Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul. But before coming back to his alma mater to lead and coach, he had the unique experience of being a star defensive back for both the Wisconsin Badgers and the Minnesota Gophers.
His football journey with the Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders started in 2002. He dabbled in positions on both sides of the ball, but shined as one of the top cornerbacks in the nation at the time, with more than 70 tackles his senior year. It earned him a full-ride scholarship at the University of Wisconsin.
"Just kind of the best of both worlds, and obviously Wisconsin had a strong football program, great academics, so it was kind of a no-brainer at that time," Royston said.
However, his priorities shifted after two seasons with the Badgers.
"I got some news that my grandma, who was really pivotal in my life and helped raise me, she was put in hospice care," he said. "And I made the tough decision to leave Wisconsin."
With a talent like his, Royston was welcomed warmly to the Gopher football program, but lost his full-ride scholarship in the process.
"I knew it was the right thing to do," he said. "I feel like I didn't need a scholarship to validate my worth."
He validated his worth and then some, leading the Big Ten in solo tackles his senior year in 2011. Royston was also a two-time captain with the Gophers, and was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week for the last game he ever played for Minnesota.
So where does his allegiance lie in this border battle?
"I'm a Gopher all day, every day," he said.
After graduating from the U of M, Royston returned to Cretin-Derham Hall to coach and work as assistant principal. More recently, he also became the school's director of diversity and inclusion.
"It's important for some of our minorities, specifically Black kids, to see somebody in a leadership position and say, 'Hey, I can do that, too, if he could do it,'" he said.
