New Rome High School football coach Bill Stewart needed about half a minute to talk about something a lot of Wolves fans have been wondering since he was announced as the school’s new coach.
“There is a great tradition here, and I love that, but tradition doesn’t win football games. Our goal is to keep that tradition strong and to keep winning,” he said. “I’ve told our players that we are going to grind, refine, and compete every day.”
Those three words stood out as Stewart eschewed the podium at Rome High School’s College and Career Academy on Wednesday evening, walking around in front of it and delivering a roughly 15-minute speech that could also be described as a pep talk. During his speech, he talked about his family, his coaching history and even showed some pictures of his family and players he has coached that reached the NFL.
A large crowd gathered in the room, with many eager to see the replacement for Rome’s winningest football coach. John Reid held a meet and greet on Feb. 12, 2015, at the Rome High School Media Center. At that time, the CCA had yet to be constructed, and Rome had never won a state title.
A bit less than 11 years later, Stewart’s meet and greet was in a larger venue. He also inherits a program that won nine region titles, reached the final four five times, and captured two state championships under Reid.
After talking about how the team and coaches will grind, refine, and compete, he also talked about some goals.
“We want to win the first, win the region, and win the championship. There you go. That’s our goal to start off,” he said “You can’t set a goal unless you’re committed to a goal, and that’s what you’re going to see from this team. But it’s not just us. This is a vested interest from everybody, the players, the coaches and the community. This community has a stake. The family members have a stake. We all have a stake, and we’re committed to make this happen.”
One of the slides Stewart showed featured six of his former players who currently play in the NFL. He talked about several of them, highlighting how they were not only great athletes but also how hard they worked. He pointed to one player, saying that he was undersized, but that didn’t stop him. He talked about how the player would do lots of extra work after every practice and that his attitude and work ethic helped him achieve and get to the NFL.
“The other thing about those guys is that they had great character. When they got to college they knew how to go out and work. It’s great because I know I helped play a part in their success,” Stewart said. “But I also helped play a part in a former player who is an electrician, and others that are great husbands. We’er not just getting better at football but we’re helping build kids that know to be a successful community and building kids that are first class for themselves, their families and their community.”
Stewart earned his first head coaching job at Etowah, leading the Eagles to three region titles and a berth in the state playoffs each year he coached. Those wins marked the first time the school had won a region title or reached the state playoffs.
He later took over at North Gwinnett, where he led the Bulldogs to the Class 7A State Title in 2017, the first state football title in school history. The Bulldogs made two semifinal appearances during his tenure and won four region titles while reaching at least the second round of the playoffs in all six years he coached there. All told, Stewart has won 101 games, seven region titles, and a state title as a head coach in Georgia.
After shaking hands and talking with audience members for close to an hour, Stewart added a few more thoughts.
“This community is ready to win. They've won. There's a lot of tradition here, a lot of legacy, and just knowing that this community is behind the program is great,” he said. “I've already been working with the kids, and so they're ready to work. They're working hard. So I think just a little dose I've gotten already excites me. They're ready to go.”
The players are ready to go, the audience in the meet and greet was excited, and Stewart showed with his energy and enthusiasm that he’s tackling the task of being the next Rome High football coach with gusto.