Will Rodgers, 35, has wanted to be a head football coach ever since he was a young man. He now has that opportunity as the interim coach of the Riverside High School Bulldogs after Tavares Johnson Jr. stepped down last month citing personal reasons
And on Friday night at Delta Streets, Rodgers’ Bulldogs picked up their first win of the season with a 12-6 road victory over. The victory snapped a 24-game losing streak by the Bullodogs.
With 15 seconds left in the game, Riverside quarterback Jayden Moore threw the game winning pass to receiver Kyle Lewis for the winning touchdown. Moore also threw a 32-yard touchown pass to Kyle Lewis in the second quareter.
“This victory feels real good,” Rodgers said. “It is a step in the right direction”
While the midseason promotion from defensive coordinator to interim head coach isn’t ideal for Coach Rodgers, he said he is thankful for the opportunity and is going to do his best.
“I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason,” he said before practice Thursday. “I am not saying this was my destiny or whatever, but I am very appreciative that they would ask me to take on this position.
“This really is not about me. It is about the young men on our football team. I am trying to lead by example. We teach them that if somebody isn’t pulling their weight, someone else has to step up. This isn’t an unfair situation because it’s my job to step up and lead when I am needed, and the kids on the team deserve someone to lead them.”
After beginning their season losing their first five games by at least 35 points, Rodgers’ Bulldogs showed a lot of improvement last week in their 14-6 home loss to JZ George.
The Bulldogs trailed 8-0 at halftime, and got on the board with three minutes left in the game when defender Makai Fife returned an interception 65 yards into the endzone.
Rodgers’ said a big key to the recent improvement has been simplifying things.
“Everything is more simple now,” the coach said. “We looked at our skill set and decided to be more geared toward running the ball. We learned that spreading out and trying to throw the ball did not work against the stiff competition we played.”
Coach Rodgers added that freshman quarterback Jayden Moore has really stepped up and been and is learning the position quickly.
Although their record may not be what they had hoped at the start of the season, the Bulldogs still have plenty to play for.
“We have a good chance to win three of our last four games and make it to the playoffs,” the Riverside coach said.
“But this is about more than wins and losses. We want to see growth and improvement. We want to see more discipline.
Bulldogs finish undefeated in junior varsity season
The Riverside Junior High team 16-8 Thursday night to finish their season with a perfect 6-0 record.
The Bulldogs were coached by Sam Monroe and were led by a number of talented players like DJ Gatson ( running back. linebacker), Jaleel Moore (quarterback and running back_
Preston Bevill (offensive/defensive tackle) and (Demarcus Johnson) nose guard.
Coach Rodgers believes the Riverside junior varsity success can lead to varsity success in the upcoming years.
“I don’t know if they will retain me in this spot next season, but it makes sense to build a system from the 7th to the 12th grade. So by the time they get to ninth grade, they know the majority of the offense and the defense is the same. So, all they have to do is get stronger and fine tune their techniques.”
