– By Carlie Dice –

The 2012-2013 football practice has just begun. They guys are busy getting ready and in shape for the upcoming season. Suspense is building as everyone awaits the start of the new season, and also nerves are building as everyone fears how the boys will react to losing their beloved Coach D. Coach Adam Daniel was a huge piece to the puzzle of success in the football program as well as a huge asset to the business and marketing programs here at NHS. Jessica Ross, a student at NHS said, “Coach D had a huge impact on Newport football team, he took the team places that they hadn’t been in years. He will be greatly missed.”

The players are working hard trying to achieve the northeast A league championship. Though the boys are unsure of how they will feel towards a new coach, they are very enthusiastic for the upcoming season. Zack C, a student as NHS said, “Football for hope is movement that uses the power of the game for positive social change. So I’m hoping we are ready to come play physical and be the Northeast A champs!”

In their last season with Coach D by their sides, the football team achieved greater goals than they have in many years. The football program has come very far through hard work and self discipline. The band of brothers that play under the Friday night lights should be very proud of themselves. The entire community is very anxious to see how team leadership will hold them together and push their limits to places they have never seen before.

The new coach has yet to be announced but the boys have been promised nothing less than something better. Mr. Matson, the very proud principal at NHS, has promised the football team that he would find them a coach that would do nothing less than lead them to achieve their dreams. Nate W, a student at NHS said “How to hit like a man, determination and motivation.” Someday our football team will proudly hold a trophy high in the air and be able to say that they achieved their goal.

This season, Newport came in with high hope and even higher goals. The goal was to be the NEA league champions. They were unable to achieve that goal, even with the starting the season at 4-0, winning the first league game against the reigning NEA champions, the Colville Indians. All of Newport’s hopes were high at that point. Newport was the only league team to defeat Colville. Then the Grizzlies went into Riverside territory to face the Rams. This was a very winnable game for Newport and they let that go to their heads. Newport put up 28 unanswered points in the first half. Then The Grizzlies had 1 touchdown in the second half and Riverside scored 36 unanswered points against Newport. So the overconfidence led to the 33 to 40 loss, which destroyed Newport’s confidence going into the biggest game of the season against the 5-0 Freeman Scotties. There is not much to be said about this game other than the fact that Freeman came to play and Newport simply did not. All coaches agreed that “In the past, two losses we have not had the senior leadership we have had in previous wins!”

Then, Newport went to a non-league game against the worthy foe of Lake City. The Grizzlies were unable to play their starting team because they had a game on the Friday after. So Newport played their 2nd string guys and won 36 to 20. This win gave Newport a 5-2 and prepared them for the last league game of the season. Coach D said, “To keep winning, we have to find our passion, and get back our preseason pump!” Newport’s starting quarterback Travis Martin said, “We need to keep working hard in practice so that the games are easy.” The last league game vs. Lakeside was very nerve-wracking in the first half, ending with the team down by ten, but then, Newport came back to win by 20 points. The final score was 52 to 32.

The final regular season game is at Springdale. They are a 2B school, which is one size smaller than Newport, but every time the Grizzlies have played Springdale, they always come to play. This will be a great game to prove the Newport Grizzlies are better then a 4th seed team, The Grizzlies will prove They should be number one!

Newport football has been known for hard work but not coming out with a win at the end of the week. Some critics have made it seem like there is no light at the end of the tunnel, but coach Daniel, a University High school graduate, has come to shed a new light. When asked why he came to Newport he stated, “It is a great opportunity to come to a small town and make a big difference. I want to be here to change the culture of our football team, to change the fact that students think they will fail in football, and make them expect to win!”

He wanted to become his own boss and wanted it to be a challenge as well. Coach D wishes to make these changes by using a lot of enthusiasm, and getting to know each kid as an individual. “This will make our students better men.” He is college football star from the University of Idaho, who has been assistant coaching at Mead for 13 years. He claims to be an outdoor boy all his life so he prefers the small town of Newport, so this was the place for him.

To help him make these changes he expects his players to have heart, energy, and most of all high expectations of both themselves and the team as a whole.

Coach D is here to make a change that Newport has been in need of for a very long time. He brings his heart and passion, enthusiasm and energy, and his pride and glory to the football field every single practice and game, all to make this hopeful football program as successful as possible. Newport is lucky and in dire need of a great coach like Daniel. He says this place feels like home for him. This is important because any great coach, no matter how good, will coach badly if he has no ambition to make the team and community better.  Having the feeling of being at home is one of the most persuasive elements about a place. When he feels at home he coaches his best, this is what we want! So as a community we should help coach Daniel help our football team become the state contenders they can and will become.