Every day is a new day for the Cowboys. Another day to prepare for the challenges that lie ahead and another day to take the failures of the past as lessons for future success. 

For Coppell, Friday’s first District 6-6A clash against Plano at Buddy Echols Field, with kickoff at 7 p.m., marks the beginning of a new season. A season separate from the earlier losses against Prestonwood Christian Academy and Highland Park.

“This is a new season, everyone’s record is 0-0 going into district play and these are the games that matter in regards to playoffs and that needs to be our mindset: that it was the first day of new season on Monday and we’ve had a really good week,” Coppell coach Michael DeWitt said. 

Coming off a bye week that emphasized play assignments and preparation for anything thrown at the Cowboys, Coppell is continuing work to improve on its schemes.

“We are getting better every week and we are learning how to practice,” DeWitt said. “Some of the issues were some busted assignments and that was because of our youth and some of it was not understanding what you need to do throughout the week to be prepared for a game on Friday.” 

While Plano does not have any statistically superior players on its team, the team will be able to punish the Cowboys if they don’t come out prepared for the challenge.

“I’m not going to doubt their secondary and we have to come out sharp and prepared,” Coppell senior wide receiver Dylan Nelson said. “It is really important to come out with a strong start [in district-play] to let everyone know we’re in this [district] too because everyone is counting us out based on our previous and our past.” 

Friday’s clash marks the homecoming game for Coppell. Getting a win on home turf, in its first district game and on homecoming would be encouraging for the Cowboys. 

“It’s huge if you can start district-play 1-0 then you put yourself in a really good position,” DeWitt said. “Especially playing at home, you want to win at home and you have a lot of people coming back to watch the game. There’s a lot of excitement around the game so you certainly want to walk away with a win.”  

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