The last time North Summit football coach Jerre Holmes was patrolling the sidelines in 2010, “The Walking Dead” was airing its first season, Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister” was blaring on the radio and Pixar’s “Toy Story 3” was the highest-grossing movie of the year.
It’s been 10 years, but Holmes is back coaching football as the Braves’ head coach.
Previously, Holmes was North Summit’s football coach from 2000 to 2010, when he won back-to-back state championships in 2007 and 2008. He left the job in 2010 and became the North Summit School District’s superintendent. In recent years, he’s also worked as the Braves’ girls basketball coach.
“It’s awesome, I just never thought it would happen again,” Holmes said. “I thought you have your day and then you move on to other things, and to be able to come back and do this is pretty exciting for me and my family.”
Holmes will be tasked with revitalizing a program that hasn’t quite replicated his past successes, especially in recent years. North Summit’s seven wins last year were tied for its most in a single season since 2014. But the Holmes era started on the right foot last week with a 20-18 comeback win over Delta.
“That was a good way to start out, and a whole bunch of confidence went into the team after that, and it felt really good,” senior Crimzon Crittenden said.
Holmes is also bringing back former North Summit head coach Devin Smith as defensive coordinator. Smith was on Holmes’ staff in that role during North Summit’s championship years, and the hope is that he can help the team do the same thing all these years later.
“Number one, what he brings to me is that we’re pretty like-minded,” Holmes said. “We think pretty much alike, so I know how passionate he is about the game, I know how much he loves these kids and that’s a pretty good formula for success.”
Though North Summit has moved down from Class 2A with a return to Class 1A, not much has actually changed outside of not having to worry about Class 2A heavyweights Beaver and Millard. The Braves’ region schedule is untouched from last year, but two dates are practically circled on their calendar: South Summit in non-region play on Friday and Duchesne on Oct. 15 at the end of the season.
Duchesne has won the last six region titles, and North Summit is just 4-10 against the Eagles dating back to 2004. The Braves haven’t had any better luck against South Summit, as they haven’t beaten the Wildcats since 2013. While South Summit is favored, the rivalry game is always special for both sides.
“It’s just a good, healthy rivalry that both teams want to win,” Holmes said. “My daughter married a South Summit kid, so that kind of thing happens and we live with that and it’s fine.”
Hopes are high for the Braves heading into the South Summit game and the rest of the season, and senior Kale Hobson has seen how this year’s team is different.
“We’ve all been playing with each other since we were little kids, and so we’re all pretty tight,” Hobson said. “There’s a lot of unity compared to last year.”