Stowe settling in as new Trojan football coach

Since being hired to take over the Trojan football program at DHS in February, to say things have been rather hectic for head coach Bart Stowe is putting it mildly.

After spending the last half of the school year driving back and forth from his home in Haywood County to Dyersburg, Stowe recently closed on selling his house and closed on buying one in Dyersburg -- all in the same day.

"It's been crazy, it really has," said Stowe. "But I'm excited to be here. Everybody from the administration, coaches and teachers have been really helpful and that has made the transition go a lot smoother and it's been a real positive experience for us."

During the past five months Stowe has been busy getting to know his new team and assistant coaches, all of which will remain with the program except for Bert Snow, who left to take over the football program at Lake County.

Though still in the process of adding one or more assistants to his staff, Stowe did acknowledge the hiring of a new offensive line coach in David Davis. The new assistant comes to the Trojans with college coaching experience having been a graduate assistant at the University of Memphis.

"David's really going to be a good coach for us. He played at Itawamba Junior College and then started at the University of Memphis for a couple of years. He's spent the last two years coaching the offensive line for Memphis as a graduate assistant and comes highly recommended so we're excited about having him on the staff," stated Stowe.

One week after making the decision to leave Haywood County after eight seasons to take over the prestigious Trojan program, Stowe lost his father -- legendary Lexington coach Jim Stowe -- to a massive heart attack. The sudden loss has been hard on Stowe, something he still struggles with today.

"My dad was everything to me. He was my best friend and my biggest mentor, so to lose him so suddenly like I did, well, it's been really rough and I'm still working through some things and will be for some time I'm sure," said Stowe.

While the last five months have been a roller coaster of emotions for Stowe, he is impressed with the work ethic of the squad and said his first spring practice with the team went rather well, especially considering he was without several members of the squad due to the success of the Trojan baseball team.

"We were able to get outside every day and the weather cooperated with us, which was a big positive," added Stowe. "I wasn't able to see the whole picture this spring because several kids that are looking to be starters on both sides of the ball, especially defense, were playing baseball."

Though without several key players, Stowe was ok with it, seeing the experience as a positive for everybody involved.

"Hey, that's great. The baseball team doing well is just another positive for the school, the players involved and that will roll over into football. Some other players got a chance to get out there and perform which was good, but I just wasn't able to see the whole picture."

What the new head coach did see was an offense that made positive steps throughout the various practices.

"Offensively, we took some steps in the right direction. We've got some lineman returning from last year, a running back and a couple of fullbacks so I'm excited about that and our quarterback prospects." he said. "Has the quarterback situation been solved? No it hasn't, but we're headed in the direction that I see us going. The quarterback position will be decided through the summer and while we're at camp."

Stowe was impressed with how hard the players worked during the spring, though he said he expected it to be that way.

"In the spring you line up and see who wants to play football. The kids here have a very positive attitude and a solid work ethic, but I knew they would have that when I got here. Everybody knows to play football you have to be willing to work hard and these kids definitely are working hard," said Stowe.

Stowe made it very clear to his assistant coaches that he coaches for the kids, a point he drove home when first arriving at DHS.

"I am all about the kids. The first thing I told them when I came in was that they were not going to be here with me if they're not going to be for the kids because this program is for them and is all about them," he said.

Over the past four years the Trojans have seen their share of transition and instability, something Stowe said is now over.

"I bought a house here and this is where I want to be. I wouldn't have come here if I didn't plan on staying here. In any program there are going to be up and downs, but what you have here now is a coach that really cares about the kids and I'm going to work very hard for these kids. This is my passion and I've been around football my entire life, so I'm going to coach my style and this will remain a program the community is going to be proud of, I guarantee you that," he added.