TYLER, Texas — It's all new for the Tyler Legacy Red Raiders. Following the departure of Coach Joe Willis, they found their new man in charge, Beau Trahan. Now, for the first time this year, the team is out and practicing to kick off spring ball.
And it's not quite week one yet, but the excitement is certainly still there, especially for the head coach.
"You know, just getting everything going," Trahan said. "It feels good to be back on the field and doing what I love."
He starts off his spring armed with some experience out on the field.
Rising senior quarterback Luke Wolf will return for his final year. Trahan is hoping he'll make another big step, as the signal caller has been improving every single year. He'll also look to thrive under new offensive coordinator Brad Willard, formerly the head coach at Mount Vernon.
One thing's for certain: Wolf is loving the coaching staff and the offensive emphasis to help him grow.
"The new coaching staff is great. I have nothing bad to say about them," Wolf said. "Coach Beau is great. Coach Willard is absolutely amazing. Love them all."
Another senior leader will be four-star defensive end Travis Jackson. Just this week, he committed to TCU to play at the next level. Now, he's looking to take the recruiting pressure off and continue to momentum of his defensive success from last year.
"The recruitment process was good. I had a lot of big opportunities and a lot of good schools reach out," Jackson said. "It's been a fun process and hopefully I'm ready to keep it going."
The opening kickoff may still be months away, but the fundamentals and experience is built right here in the spring. Without the building blocks, it's hard to establish the culture. With a new coach, every day of practice is a crucial one, especially in April.
"Right now, it's just installation. Getting base schemes in, running at a high level, and being productive in them," Trahan said. "Then from there, we'll start adding to the mix and seeing where we're going to go."
Tyler Legacy's annual spring game is scheduled for May 12.