The perfect scheme: dedicated athletes desiring wins equals success
CAPTION: New Marble Falls Independent School District athletic director and football head coach Keri Timmerman addresses the crowd at the board of trustees meeting Dec. 18 he was approved for hire. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro
When Keri Timmerman became the Marble Falls Independent School district athletic director and football head coach, no one had to tell him what he was inheriting.
The Mustangs finished 3-17 the last two years. The reality, however, is that in the last decade, the Mustangs have compiled a 37-65 record with three different head coaches. The two standout years of 2020 and 2021, where Marble Falls went 16-7 and won three playoff games, had a cornerstone class. That group, which graduated in 2022, was 8-1 as freshmen where they ran the spread offense under the direction of former head coach Mike Birdwell. As sophomores, they began learning the Slot-T offense under the watchful eye of head coach Brian Herman.
So by time they were juniors in 2020 in a brand new district that featured several Austin Independent School District members, they were poised for a breakout year and bought into a system that was brand new because their desire to win and restore the program’s glory was that important to them.
That example of success with a class willing to do what it takes to succeed may have been why Timmerman said the following.
“The reality is this is going to take time,” he said moments after being approved for hire by the MFISD Board of Trustees Dec. 18. “It’s going to change because of y’all. Sacrifice in the summer, do weights, do ball skills early. There will be a lot of things that will be on our kids. Quarterbacks can be developed if kids want to learn.”
Timmerman utilizes a multiple, spread-option system that’s a combination of what Gus Malzahn and Chad Morris run. He said he would create plays that complement the Mustangs’ personnel.
But before he introduces his Xs and Os, Timmerman emphasized he wanted to meet the athletes and develop rapport with them. And that includes those at Marble Falls Middle School.
“Being present matters,” he said. “The goal is for everyone to be speaking the same language. You can’t have that when you have different expectations at different levels. What are the messages we’re sending to the student athletes? All those things have to happen from the ground up.”
And once that happens, the players will trust the scheme because there’s a consistent message throughout the program that they, their families and community can count on.
“Kids have to feel like you care about them and believe that and trust that,” he said.
He recalled his first year as the head coach at Lake Worth High School where he worked from sunrise to way past sunset. He gained 35 pounds while working 17-hour days for months “just to get a grip on where everything was.”
Timmerman will apply what he learned from that experience on his first official day on the job at Marble Falls High School, which is Jan. 8.
“My goal is to make sure I’m impacting the kids in the community,” he said. “The No. 1 thing is to be patient. Don’t expect me to come and quickly turn the ship around. You have to meet the kids where they are. It takes time. A lot of that is consistency and seeing where we are.”
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