CARROLLTON – From November 2020 – when longtime head coach Paul Ressa announced his resignation from the position after 14 seasons – to March 2021, the Carrollton Newman Smith football program was head coach-less.

In fact, the program was considered ‘untouchable.’ Even to the point that no assistant coach cared to step up and accept the interim position.

That’s because when the final horn sounded on the Trojans’ season last fall, they had once again missed the playoffs – this time in a district that initially made them favorites to finish in the top four.

“Everybody tells me there’s 101 reasons this program can’t win,” first-year head coach Robert Boone said. “But our kids continue to knock it out of the park. It’s been difficult to redirect the culture, sure, but we see these kids’ confidence being resurrected one day at a time.”

“We understand the public’s perception of Newman Smith football. And we embrace the challenge of changing it.”

Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD hasn’t been known – or even respected – for its programs on the gridiron. In the past three years, its four schools have posted a collective record of 33-82, including two winless seasons. It’s part of the ‘public perception’ Boone seeks to redirect.

“I want to make Newman Smith – and CFBISD – a place of destination,” Boone said. “Every job won’t be 100 percent the way a guy wants it. While most would consider [Newman Smith] a ‘startup’ or ‘project,’ I see it as an opportunity to imbed in these kids what it takes to resurge this program.”

“There’s definitely a new vibe around here,” quarterback Alejandro Diaz noted. “We feel like this is a winning culture. Guys are starting to buy in.”

Boone recognizes that this process starts off the field – specifically in the classroom. When he arrived on campus, 50 football players were slated to attend summer school for the duration of the break, causing them to miss considerable time on the field.

“We got our kids in the classroom and in make-up testing," Boone said. "We knocked that number down to five."

Boone also notes that same level of accountability has spread like wildfire throughout the Trojans’ locker room.

“I can already see kids buying in to the culture we’re building," he said. "They’re picking each other up for morning sessions, keeping each other in check on the field, and showing a willingness to take care of business in the classroom.

“All I heard about when I took this job was how ‘un-coachable’ these kids are. It seems so crazy now because it’s the exact opposite. These guys want to be coached.”

Newman Smith center Jacob Rios has seen an improvement in the locker room.

“Coach Boone has brought a lot of new energy to Newman Smith,” Rios said. “Kids that didn’t show up at summer workouts before are here regularly now.”

Prior to accepting his first-ever head coaching position with the Trojans, Boone made coaching stops at McKinney Boyd, Lubbock Estacado, and McKinney. He says what he learned from those programs is invaluable.

“Every experience I've had as an offensive coordinator, it's built me up to this point,” Boone said. “There's been a lot of things that I had to learn being a first-year offensive coordinator at Lubbock Estacado, as it was my first opportunity to lead both a major unit and other coaches as well. At McKinney, I was able to do that on a larger scale – which led me to this job.”

On the field, Boone’s offensive success at Estacado and McKinney is undeniable. From 2016 to 2019, his offenses produced 388 yards per game along with 33 points per game.

Newman Smith in that same span? It scored 30 or more points a grand total of six times. Yes – six 30-point games in four seasons of play.

The key to this success can be seemingly complex but is quite simple: flexibility.

“The primary benefit is its ability to mold and conform to any pool of talent," Boone said of his multiple pistol offense. "I feel extremely confident in the athleticism we have here at Smith, so I’m already installing principles prior to our first season in the offense that I’d typically teach in year two. That’s a clear sign of how quickly our kids are grasping the concepts.”

Defensively, Boone expects the unit to set the tone for the team-wide motto that has the players focused on what it means to be a Trojan in the new era of Newman Smith football: T.A.A.T. – an acronym that stands for a simple but direct message: be ‘Tough At All Times.’ During his time at McKinney Boyd, he coached the team’s safeties at the varsity level, and was emphatic in noting the importance of being a head coach with knowledge of both offense and defense.

“In football, especially at the high school level, you’ll be hard pressed to find someone who is truly well-rounded as far as their knowledge and ability to coach both sides of the ball,” Boone said. “It allows me to create a personal relationship with all of our players. Nobody feels neglected due to the position they play."

It’s with this knowledge that Boone was able to discuss what his ideal timeline for the Trojans’ on-field success would be.

“The one thing I want to see [this season] are the things I've set forth for our kids when I got here in March. I want us to execute the little things correctly and have mental toughness. We always talk about being Tough At All Times – I want to see a tough brand of football … and once these are established, the wins will follow.”

The head coach then focused on his long-term goals, saying: “As to the next three-to-five years, I've already talked to our kids about being one of the best programs in the state of Texas. I want Newman Smith to be a place of destination, whether that's coaches that want to coach here or players that admire our program and want to be a Newman Smith Trojan.”

It doesn’t take an expert to realize this mentality is one Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD’s football programs have been missing for far too long.

And while Boone exceeds the criteria for a Texas high school football head coach by all on-field measurables, there’s a specific trait that makes him the perfect fit for Newman Smith, and its importance simply can’t be overstated:

He believes in them – even at a time when nobody else does.

“Coach Boone is all about business,” said linebacker Jayvian Coulter. “He’s brought the winning culture and has inspired this program…

He sees something in us that nobody else has seen.”