SARASOTA COUNTY - Imagine School in North Port is ready for some football.  Friday the school became the first charter school in the area with plans to field a football team.  It would also become just the second high school football program in the county's largest city.

Parents, teachers, community leaders and school officials came out to cheer, excited they say for what will become the city's second high school football team. "It's pretty unique at least in this area for a relatively small school such as ours to be thinking big along the lines of a full fledged football program," says Principal Justin Matthews.

The charter school began five years ago as a K-5, then expanded to K-8.  This year was the high school's first; 150 9th graders took over a former business park along Toledo Blade Boulevard.  "We have a need for options and choices in this community. It is not just a want," Says North Port City Commissioner David Garofalo.

The school is expected to top out at 600 students as the grade levels grow.  North Port high currently has more than 2,300. "It's exciting when you have a program that come aboard that offers football. I think some people see it as competing against your own teams in your own city but I see it as another choice and another option. Maybe do something different."

The school also introduced their new head coach, Jeppe Bennetsen, who has had great successes at the youth level in the area, bringing the North Port Huskies to a national championship game this year.  "They are so dedicated to education -- a 2.5 grade point average; a little higher than most schools.  The opportunity to coach here is just a no-brainer."

While enrollment will stay small at the school, they may actually have one big advantage.  Without reason, students and student athletes can come to the publicly-funded school from anywhere in Sarasota County -- even students from Charlotte County. 

So far, a handful of high-profile athletes who have grown up in the city -- which now has 12,000 school-aged kids -- have left to play for other local programs.  Bennetsen says they want to change that.  "We have dominated at the youth level.  Anybody within the two county areas. The advantage is we get to keep those kids right here in house."

It's a move that will take time, but ultimately could shake things up when it comes to local high school sports.  "When you have a community growing you need more than one.  You need multiple things.  I think at the end of the day it is going to make this community better," says Matthews.

The first year high school already has nine other sports teams competing.  They plan to start football spring practice this year and field a JV team in the 2012 season.  The following year they hope to have both a JV and varsity team.