Video by Marisa Thakady and Macy Wise.

By Stephanie Alexander
entertainment editor
@stephanierose2u

The tradition that was lost two years ago due to district realignment is back, with the much-anticipated Southlake Carroll vs. Coppell football game on Friday.

Senior inside linebacker Bo Anderson has been on both sides of the rivalry. Born and raised in Southlake, he was in its football program until his eighth grade year. Anderson came to Coppell from Lindale, Texas in the middle of his sophomore year and he loves his Cowboy family.

“Coppell is cool because the coaches really care about you as a man,” Anderson said. “Offseason is rough because they do actually punish you and you see a different side of the coaches because they are really hard on you, but at the end of the day they will be patting you on the back telling you good work.”

Although the two cities are geographically near each other, Coppell football is a different atmosphere than that of Southlake.

Southlake Carroll football coach Hal Wasson heavily emphasizes that building relationships and trust are key on and off the field.

“We invest a great deal of time on trust. You either trust your coaches and your teammates or you don’t,” Wasson said. “If you don’t trust, we don’t think you’re ever going to be the kind of team you want to be. Everyone can get caught up in wins and losses and that’s fine, but what we are trying to instill in our players are relationships because relationships go on for a lifetime.”

Wasson also prides his team on having an attitude of gratitude.

“I’d like to think our strengths are being a disciplined football team,” Wasson said. “They play as hard as they can, they are relentless in they way they go about their business, they are accountable…if you focus on your attitude and your energy everything will fall into place.”

Anderson’s two older brothers Luke and Jake are former Dragon football players. Luke being a Southlake Carroll alum and Jake graduating from Lindale.

“You always wish you could grow up with the kids you play high school ball with, but I like the social skills I’ve gained from moving,” Anderson said. “The Southlake kids are really good and they have an old tradition that was real solid when [former Dragons coach Todd Dodge] was around. That is when my brother was playing there and they were winning state championships all the time. It was cool being a kid and watching my brother be part of that dynasty.”

However, as he switched sides, he has endured some heat from his brothers.

“I get a little salty when my brother [Luke] talks about how he used to beat Coppell, but he understands that everything is just high school football; it’s not that big of a deal,” Anderson said. “Coaches change and people change, but there will always be parents and parents will always be nuts when it comes to their kids playing football.”

Wasson affirms that the Dragon mentality is to take everything play-by-play no matter which team they are running up against.

“Not to deemphasize or over emphasize it, the next game is always the big one,” Wasson said. “We keep our emphasis on the next game as the biggest game because it is the next game and that is just they way we approach things.”

Even with a rivalry as huge as Coppell, the Cowboys are no exception to their rule.

“I know Coppell has success and they are a talented bunch but I don’t know their makeup. I would like to think I know a lot about us and we don’t focus on comparing players and opponents, we like to keep our focus on things we can control,” Wasson said. “Everybody we play seems to give us a good run at it so it’s just going to be a very competitive environment.”

On the flip side, most of Anderson’s teammates were born and raised in Coppell. Senior cornerback Bryce VonZurmuehlen has gone through the Coppell football youth system since peewee. He will be the first of four brothers to lead the Cowboy legacy.

“Around here when you think Coppell football, we’re really disciplined players, we are coached amazingly well, not just as players on the field, but as men, too,” VonZurmuehlen said. “They remind us that we will be future husbands, fathers, workers and they do a good job of teaching us how to act right and do right in life.”

Coaching players to be strong men is a sentiment shared by Wasson and his Southlake team.

“I think the ultimate compliment a player can get was that he was a great teammate,” Wasson said. “The hard part is to take constructive criticism as the truth. Being able to do that and knowing deep down we have your best interest.Football is a very hard game, it’s easy and fun to watch but there are a lot of moving parts.”

Football is a bonding agent in the VonZurmuehlen family. With his brother, sophomore Blake VonZurmuehlen, already in the Coppell Cowboys program, Bryce is looking forward to his younger brothers joining and sees them as inspiration to be role models.

“Beau, my little brother, is on the sidelines at all the games and that is just his utopia,” VonZurmuehlen said. “They look up to us so much, and that reminds us that we have to do right. I love having my football family and my actual family being so involved in the football program.”

Having played the game in high school, Bryce’s father, David VonZurmuehlen, has passed down his love of football to his four sons. He has also been the president of the Coppell Youth Football Association for three years and coaches the fourth graders. With his experience, he knows the fundamentals of how to be successful.

“I believe the most important thing is confidence, and of course fun,” Mr. VonZurmuehlen said. “I want them to understand the game of football, we want these boys to go on to middle school football and those coaches will be impressed and have some boys that know how to block and tackle. You get into ninth grade and it is not West versus East and North anymore, it’s now us versus the world.”

Mr. VonZurmuehlen admired the way Bryce and his former peewee teammates have grown and bonded since CYFA.

“If you look at right now you have Jacob (Murray) at safety and Bryce is at corner, they are like brothers,” Mr. VonZurmuehlen said. “They are kindred spirits and they trust each other; they are almost sharing the same mind on the field. They are always on the same page, and it is a very lethal combination.”

Beyond the field, the unity of Coppell is seen through the student section and family atmosphere. Every Friday night, the community gathers to rally around the boys proudly.

“I definitely think our student section is an advantage; I think we are closer knit,” Bryce said. “Especially as a football team we bonded and we are closer as under and upperclassmen. We’ll bond and fight together. We have a lot of talented people on our squad and we are only going to get better from here and I can’t wait to see where that talent takes us.”

Even though Coppell does not have the state championships like Southlake Carroll, Mr. VonZurmuehlen is a believer in “Cowboy fight never dies” and that Coppell is team with the element of surprise.

“Southlake has the tradition of state championships and we don’t and that kind of wears on us, but we’re scrappy,” Mr. VonZurmuehlen said. “Sometimes that rich tradition can lead to overconfidence and I believe that they might underestimate the Coppell Cowboys. I think it is going to be a fantastic game.”

Although Anderson is dedicated to taking home a win, he maintains respect for his former team.

“I am grateful to have been brought up by Southlake, when we walk in the stadium there will definitely be a respect level,” Anderson said. “No mercy though, Coppell all the way. Hopefully it will be my best game.”