CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – Kenwood will be looking to bounce back after coming off of a 3-8 season that featured an opening-round loss to Kirby 41-13 in the Class 5A playoffs.

At the helm for the Knights in 2019 is first-year head coach Les Greer.

Greer discussed what it was about the job in particular that lured him to Clarksville.

“The principal and the athletic director Mr. Heaston and Mr. Chadwell,” Greer said. “I met with them and their vision and my vision for what a football program looks like was very much in alignment. We got athletes, good kids and now just need to build a fundamental foundation in order to teach them how to be smart, tough and disciplined football players.”

Greer’s previous stop was at The King’s Academy in Seymour where he resigned as the head coach and athletic director midway through the 2018 season. He finished up the 2018 season as an assistant coach at Stewarts Creek.

Kenwood has failed to eclipse a .500 record since 2015 when the Knights finished 8-4 and advanced to the second round of the playoffs. Greer elaborated on how this year’s team can right the ship.

“We just have to get better every day,” Greer said. “Show up in practice, work hard and do things the right way. If we do those things, we’ll be fine.”

When it comes to implementing a new system on both sides of the ball, there can be quite the learning curve. According to Greer, the transition has been relatively seamless to this point.

“The players are working hard,” Greer said. “They’re great kids. They bought in and they ask good questions. They’ve learned the schemes. Anytime you come in and try to implement new things there’s going to be little wrinkles here or there. Every place is different. Kids are different in general with how they learn, so you have to figure out how you teach things, but the process is ultimately the same.”

For Greer, taking care of the little things is of vast importance because in doing so, the big things often times take care of themselves.

“I only know one way to coach football,” Greer said laughingly. “I just work the process that I’ve been doing for 14 years. Every day we have organized practices, pay attention to detail including every little thing like how our locker is set up. When we leave the locker room every day, everything has its place. We start with there and we end with there. Everything in between is the same.”

Since taking over in the spring, Greer has already learned a great deal about his new group of talented players.

“They’re really good kids,” Greer said. “They really are. It took a little bit at first learning how to practice, but now we’re there. You can’t get better unless you show up and work hard in practice every day.”

Kenwood (0-1) hosted Hopkinsville (KY) Friday in its season opener, but fell to the Knights 35-21.

2019 Schedule
Aug. 23 Hopkinsville (KY)   (L) 35-21
Aug. 30 at Oakland
Sept. 6 Northeast
Sept. 13 Cheatham County
Sept. 20 at Northwest
Sept. 27 at Henry County
Oct. 4 West Creek
Oct. 10 Clarksville High
Oct. 18 Bye
Oct. 25 Jackson North Side
Nov. 1 at Dyer County
Nov. 8 Playoffs round one