By Russell Slaton
russell@themonitor.net

KEMP-The Eustace Bulldogs won their 2026 season opener Aug. 28 against longtime foe Kemp, which made the first victory of Phillip Smith’s career at Eustace even sweeter.
“I’ve been coaching 25 years mostly as a defensive coordinator,” Smith told The Monitor. “This is my third stint here at Eustace. I was here from 2004-2009, left for a year and came back in 2010, left again in 2011 and now I’m back.”
And back they are, as Eustace piled up 40 points in the first half while keeping the Yellowjackets of Kemp scoreless. The Bulldogs tacked on two late touchdowns after Kemp scored its sole touchdown of the game, which set off a sideline celebration and congratulatory pictures on the field afterward, including the coaching staff with Eustace ISD Superintendent Brandi Dyer.
“I would say my coaching style has changed some,” Smith said. “I’m probably not as loud and mean as I used to be. I take great pride in being thought of as a players’ coach. I love building relationships with players. I have had the privilege of speaking at three of my former football players’ funerals. I think that right there shows the relationships I build.”
Though held scoreless in the first two quarters, Kemp had its first-half moments. Halfway through the initial quarter, Kemp running back Cole Smith took an inside handoff near midfield and took off, finally being chased out of bounds inside the Eustace 30 but not before he had gained another set of downs on the fourth-down play. Also, halfway into the second quarter, Kemp’s Riley Roberson made a soaring and twisting catch along the sideline, hauling in Santiago Avila’s looping pass. Those drives ended with no Kemp points.
Late in the third quarter, Kemp’s offense, which totaled 102 yards during the game, gained enough traction to score Kemp’s single touchdown of the contest, which brought the hometown fans to their feet. That drive gained momentum with 3:06 left in the third quarter, as the Yellowjackets were already on Eustace’s doorstep. That’s when Kemp running back Zaki Brown zipped around end for 8 yards and went out of bounds inside the Bulldogs’ 10-yard line. Brown led Kemp on the other side of the ball with 5.5 tackles against Eustace, followed in that category by Camron Booker with 3.5 tackles.
Then, a few plays later, Hayden Olivarez rumbled across the goal line for a 5-yard Kemp touchdown with 1:57 remaining until the fourth quarter. Next, after sorting through penalty flags before, during and following the first attempt at the point-after, Kemp lined up on offense and again gave the ball to Olivarez, who cruised over the goal line to tally the 2-point conversion and reduce Kemp’s deficit to 40-8. Olivarez led Kemp on the night with 44 yards on the ground.
Another flicker of hope flared for Kemp later in the third quarter. On a quarterback keeper, Eustace quarterback Breylon Baker spied a straight path bisecting the field, then took off for what appeared to be a touchdown run. That was until Daniel Bottello, playing in the Kemp defensive backfield, found the ball and tapped it out of Baker’s hands as the quarterback ran by at the 30-yard line, then the Yellowjackets recovered the fumble five yards farther.
But Kemp was never able to seriously threaten while Eustace looked dominant, like a program in the making. “I do believe the guys are buying in,” Smith said. “We have a lot of new faces. A lot of guys are playing this year that haven’t played in a while. So that is exciting. We will have about 35-plus on varsity this year. Seventy-plus in all high school football programs and another 80-plus in the junior high (football program).
“Every player we have will contribute to this team,” said Smith. “We are a family and these players are a band of brothers. The ultimate goal is of course to win some games. But I’m challenging these guys. We want to leave this program better than when they started. My goal as a coach is to help turn these boys into good adults, fathers, husbands, employees and to give them a sense of worth. 
“I have a great group of coaches helping me lead these guys and I’m truly grateful for the opportunity.”