Week 1 Winner: Rodney Webb
Rodney Webb specializes in rebuilding football
programs.
"Building the belief we can win,'' is the
way Webb phrases it.
He was very successful in
five-year stretches at Royse City and at Horn (Mesquite), compiling an
85-44 record and nine straight playoff appearances. Now he's in the
first year of "fixing'' the Rockwall
Yellowjackets.
Rodney Webb, Rockwall head coach
Courtesy photo
The
45-year-old has been on the job only seven months, but under his regime
change
Rockwall
(3-2) has already equaled its win total in either of its last two
seasons.
For pushing the right buttons in the
Yellowjackets' 24-20 victory over rival Rockwall-Heath, Webb was
selected as this week's Capital One Bank Dallas Coach of the
Week.
Webb points to signature wins that helped
jump-start programs at previous coaching stops. At Royse City in 2004,
it was a 20-17 victory over defending Class 3A state champion
Gainesville. At Horn, it was a 28-19 upset of rival Mesquite on Week 10
of the 2008 season that allowed the Jaguars to make the playoffs for the
first time.
Webb is hoping Friday's win over
previously unbeaten Rockwall-Heath is the springboard the Yellowjackets
need. An overflow crowd of 10,000 was on hand at Wilkerson-Sanders
Memorial Stadium to watch Rockwall win for only the second time in the
six-year series against its younger neighbor.
"It is
always important to win your first district game,'' said Webb. "But at
Rockwall, participation is an issue. In this era of specialization, a
lot of kids feel they have to make a decision in the eighth grade on
what sport to play. We want them to play as many sports as they can. It
is easy to give up on the sport that hasn't been winning and here that
has been football. Hopefully, we changed some
minds.''
The lead seesawed several times until the
fourth quarter when sophomore quarterback
Will
Reed connected on a 36-yard touchdown pass to
Jay
Galloway, giving the Yellowjackets the lead for good. The
defense made the four-point advantage stand up.
In
2012, Rockwall-Heath routed Rockwall, 45-12.
A
trademark for Webb's teams has been outstanding quarterback play. Reed
completed 14 of 17 for 194 yards and three touchdowns.
"Because Will is a sophomore, we want to limit the
things we asked him to do, so he's operating out of a smaller box,''
said Webb, an offensive lineman in his playing days. "We're going to
take it slow, but we think he's going to be a good
one.''
Rockwall last made the playoffs in 2010. The
wait for a playoff victory has grown to 21 seasons.
When Webb, a Tarleton State graduate and a 2007
inductee to the school‘s Hall of Fame, was hired at Rockwall in early
March, it solved a dilemma. His family has long resided in Rockwall.
Wife Fran teaches computer education at the school and daughter Gracy,
the couple's only child, is a sophomore volleyball player
there.
"It was difficult not to be with my family and
they were so happy at Rockwall, it didn't make sense for them to come
over to Horn,'' Webb said. "This was the only job I would have left Horn
for.''
On Friday, Rockwall hosts Webb's old team in
an intriguing District 12-5A match-up. Horn is off to a 5-0
start.
"It's going to be weird,'' Webb said. "The
hard part is going to be pre-game. I want to give those Horn guys a hug
and at the same time I want to win the game.
"I love
those kids at Horn. I told them that the day I left. I hope they
understand that. I'm proud of them and the season they are having. But
my job now is to do the best I can with our kids at Rockwall.''
