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FERRIDAY — Ferriday Head Coach Stanley Smith announced his resignation. He became the Trojans head coach in 2017. Smith is a 2001 graduate of Ferriday and played on the defensive line and as a middle linebacker.

In his tenure, he won a state championship and led them to a 47-18 record overall.

This past season, his squad went 2-7 after missing a month of summer practice due to COVID-19. Ferriday beat its rival Vidalia to win the Concordia Parish Classic to end the year. He felt things were digressing.

“It was time. I was looking for growth. It was time for us to move forward, and it never happened.” Smith said. “Coaching is not over for me. I’m going to take a step back and get a refresher.”

Before coaching at Ferriday, he coached at the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff for the 2015-16 season. In 2014, he coached at Louisiana College. From 2010 to 2013, he coached at Carol and Grant High School.

Currently, he is building affordable homes in the Miss-Lou and Monroe as part of a private project. Although, he has talked to a few programs about coaching football again.

Additionally, he will help his wife Raven Smith with her newly opened Premier Health and Wellness Clinic on Highland Boulevard in Natchez. She supported him for many years as a coach, so it is his turn to return the favor, he said.

Smith said he would never forget his first win as head coach at Ferriday. He led the Trojans to a 37-27 upset over 5A Alexandria High School. Ferriday’s semifinal win over Amite in 2019 to punch a ticket to the Super Dome was special too.

“Being from Ferriday, I always dreamed of going to the state championship game,” Smith said. “Doing it against a great opponent, it was a great feeling, and it was a packed house that night too.”

He plans to return to coaching if he finds a better situation, he said. If nothing opens up down the road, it would be pretty tough to walk away from the game of football, he said.

“I have been a part of the game since I was 8. Stepping away wasn’t easy for me,” Smith said. “It was something I had to do, just to move forward. I want to thank everyone who supported me. It will not be the last you hear of me.”