Although longtime assistant Blake Meyer was promoted, the Spartans were honest about Geller’ s departure.“ The team was scared,” said wide receiver / safety Jaxson Deaton.“ When Geller left, we didn’ t know what was gonna happen. But we knew Coach Meyer could take care of us.”

Centennial’ s roster for 2025 had a large senior presence, but many of them didn’ t have much starting experience. Add in a sophomore class that eventually filled many starting roles, Meyer called it a“ weird dynamic.”

According to the team, they were very young, inexperienced and immature.

Then, in week one against Burleson in the Battle of the Boot, starting quarterback Brody Franklin and running back Jaylon Walker went down with injuries.

Sophomores took over in key spots, including quarterback Derringer Adrion. A 45-21 win for the Elks marked the first Battle of the Boot defeat for Centennial since 2021.

“ Although we lost, it definitely helped me understand that this is what I have to do to get it done,” said Adrion.

Having to switch the offense to best fit the personnel rather than what Meyer intended, the Spartans ran a flexbone scheme and relied heavily on their backfield to move the ball.

Defensively, miscommunication issues led to plenty of confusion and points given up. Finishing the regular season at 4-6, Centennial squeaked into the playoffs for the 12th year in a row.

“ We didn’ t win as many games as we’ d like, but we won the right games,” Meyer said.

Another first-round exit in the loss to Georgetown was unacceptable for the program’ s high standards, and entering 2026, Adrion is adamant that there are no excuses for the Spartans this season.

The confidence Adrion and the team hold stems from the experience they gained from the hardships of last year. Moreover, the progression in maturity week-by-week came to a turning point in the win over Tyler. Now, not only are players mentally tougher, but physically tougher as well, with Meyer recognizing that many have gained 10-15 lbs of muscle. In his first season as head coach and athletic director, responsibilities looked a lot different for Meyer. Instead of focusing on defensive schemes, most of

his duties were administrative.

Although the X’ s and O’ s of the job were suddenly on the back end for him, Meyer morphed into a role that he likes to call a“ culture coordinator.”

The change to head coach helped him build close relationships with all of his players, rather than just on the defensive side.

“ As a head coach, you just get to know more about them, more about their lives and about their families. I like that,” Meyer said.“ I think all coaches are in this business to make a difference in kids’ lives.”

One of the best examples of how Meyer has influenced the team as the culture coordinator is the switch in practices. A leadership council, made up of players and Meyer, came to the decision to switch practices to the morning. Not only that, the sessions themselves are now influenced by Meyer’ s research into other programs.

Most notably, state champions