Three Miss-Lou football teams will now open the 2007 season with a new man roaming the sidelines.

Ferriday’s James McFarland joins Cathedral’s Ken Beesley and Adams Christian’s Bobby Marks as coaches moving on to greener pastures.

McFarland, who coached the Trojans for eight seasons and spent 18 years at the school, announced his resignation to go to Riser Middle School in Monroe, La., to serve as athletic director and head football coach.

“I wasn’t looking for anything, but I got a call a couple weeks ago wanting to know if I was interested,” McFarland said. “We’re going to try it out. I’m out of high school football for now.”

McFarland compiled a 58-34 record over his eight years on the sidelines, including a 9-2 record last year.

McFarland said no one thing put him over the top in leaving.

“I wanted to get my son in a good situation, not that there’s a bad one here,” he said. “It’s a raise in pay and there’s less stress. I’m out of the high school. It’s a good opportunity for my wife. Monroe is a pretty good place. It’s a bigger place than Ferriday, so there might be more opportunities there. It was a combination of things.”

After 18 years in Ferriday, McFarland said the biggest thing he’d miss will be the students.

“I’m going to miss the kids,” he said. “I’m going to miss the high school football part. I had some great kids throughout all my years and I’m going to miss them the most. It makes me sad to even talk about it.”

Ferriday principal Michelle Bethea could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon.