Since Richard Montgomery High School’s opening in 1892 as Rockville High School, athletics have been a staple of the school community. With a rich history of competition and school spirit, the current sports teams at RM carry the legacy of athletes who played decades earlier.
Interschool athletics in Montgomery County began in February 1910, with the four high schools in the county: Rockville, Gaithersburg, Kensington, and Silver Spring High Schools. Three years later, in May 1913, the concept of an “Educational Day” was pitched to the County School Board. This was a day specifically for athletics that all public school students could participate in, featuring track-and-field competitions between schools and a large celebratory parade. The first “Educational Day” took place in 1914, and it became an annual tradition until World War II, when interest dulled.
In October 1919, the Montgomery County Sentinel reported that there was a plan to build a gymnasium at Rockville High School, the first high school gym in the county. They cited that only the “most essential paraphernalia” would be supplied, including parallel bars, wrestling mats, boxing gloves, and jumping horses. The newspaper also stated that “Rockville High School is becoming more and more a modern community center,” with the new addition.
About a decade later, Rockville High School’s gym was revamped. The new gym had a seating capacity of 700-800 people and cost $50,000 to build, which is just under $1 million in today’s dollars.
The creation of this new gym led to the creation of the RM mascot. When the gym opened, basketball became the main sport for both boys and girls. For years, the girls’ basketball team outperformed the boys, whose team name was the “Yellow Tide.” The successful girls’ team was given the nickname the “Rockettes,” after the famous dancers who perform at Radio City Music Hall, and from this nickname, the Rockets’ modern-day mascot was born.
Richard Montgomery excelled at athletics and school spirit in the 1959-60 school year, however. “Although I wasn’t around, I would have to imagine the 60’s were poppin with the multiple times the football team went undefeated. Also…I don’t take it for granted that I have had an opportunity to see multiple individuals and teams in my short time here at RM win state championships,” RM athletic director Daniel Whitlow said.
Looking back, the school has produced an array of successful athletes and coaches inspiring current sports teams and leaving lasting awards to continue legacies. One noteworthy name is coach Roy Lester, who coached Richard Montgomery from 1959 to 1968, leading the school to several county titles, eight undefeated seasons and a total record of 86-10-1. “Playing for Richard Montgomery and Roy Lester was kinda like top-of-the-ladder,” RM class of 1968 alumnus Andy Phelps said in an interview with the Diamondback. “Everybody I knew wanted to go there and play there.”
Additionally, Mike Curtis, who graduated from Richard Montgomery in 1961, attended Duke University and went on to play in Super Bowl V. Here, he intercepted a pass with under a minute left and won an NFL Championship with the Baltimore Colts in 1968.
Now, numerous awards, such as the Lindsey Silverman award (named after a former multi-sport athlete at RM), honor student-athletes as part of the Richard Montgomery School Athletic Hall of Fame. Here, generational legacies can be observed.
Tavares “Boogie” Vaughn-Cooper (‘26) recently committed to Division 2 Basketball at Young Harris college, also becoming RM’s all-time leading scorer with 1,500 career points. He follows the footsteps of his father, Tavares Cooper who is an RM Hall-of-Fame football and basketball player, now serving as a security guard at the school and giving back to the community.
“I’ve always seen RM as a powerhouse of talent. We aren’t just winning games—though we do place in the top 25% of the county—we are winning in the classroom, where our athletes rank in the top 10%. This school is a masterclass in balance, showing students how to work hard and ‘grind’ today so they can achieve bigger things tomorrow,” Whitlow said.
