SUAMICO (NBC 26) – The Warden brothers won the WIAA state football championship on Friday at Camp Randall Stadium. Alex Warden won against Bay Port and Jack Warden secured the title against Notre Dame Academy.
“It’s really special,” senior Jack Warden said. “Of course, we never managed to win a match together, but after winning we can say that we did it together and at the same time apart.”
Despite having an older brother who attended Notre Dame, Alex Warden decided to go to Bay Port.
“A lot of my friends from St. John’s was going to Bay Port and Bay Port has a great welding department, so I wanted to come and learn to weld as well,” Alex Warden said.
When Alex’s younger brother, Jack, went to Notre Dame Academy, the two continued to support each other and follow each other’s teams.
“In the playoffs, right after the game ends, I try to figure out what the score was right away to see if my brother is doing well as well,” Alex Warden said.
Jack Warden said he will ask his coaches for Bay Port score updates during his games.
The next day the brothers discussed their performances.
“We were talking about our games on Saturday morning when we both woke up,” Jack Warden said. “We would compare which team played better. Individually, he usually played better, so he has me there.”
During the season, the Rangers’ parents split up on Friday nights to attend both of their sons’ games. When they traveled to Madison for both state championships on Friday, they changed uniforms between games.
Jack Warden won the first game of the day, defeating Notre Dame Catholic Memorial 49-28. His family hoped it would go two for two.
“I texted him right after the match [Alex] like, ‘yes, we already won once, so if you don’t win, you know you’re going to hear about it forever,'” said Jack Warden.
A few hours later, Alex picked up the golden ball from Bay Port. The Pirates defeated Muskego 25-18 in the Division One title game.
“My mom was crying and emotional and very, very excited for me,” Alex Warden said. “Of course, my dad is just more proud than you could possibly be. My older brother, it was great to see him because he was crying tears of joy.”
The Warden brothers didn’t see each other until Saturday morning, as both players spent the night in Madison with their teammates.
“We were feeling pretty good, and we were talking shit with our big brother,” Alex Warden said.
Alex added that if either of them lost on Friday, the trash talk in the house would definitely get worse.
But the Warden family doesn’t have to worry about that now, as both brothers hold the first state titles in their family.
“It’s really cool that we broke up and then won the championship the same year and on the same day,” Jack Warden said.
Alex, a senior at Bay Port High School, is committed to playing football at North Dakota State University. His younger brother, Jack, will have one more high school season at Notre Dame Academy.
