Four-year-old Jerry Roberts bounced off tackling dummies on the Trinity Episcopal sideline during the Saints’ spring game May 17 against Delta Charter School. To Jerry, playing football seemed more fun than watching.

Meanwhile, out on the field, Jerry’s father, Trinity’s first-year head football coach Graham Roberts was hard at work watching his new squad’s execution of his playbook. Roberts hunched over in the Saints’ offensive huddle, called his play and broke the huddle. Then, with his arms crossed or his hands on his knees, he watched his new team go to work.

“I don’t think I could ask for a better group of guys,” Roberts said. “These guys do push themselves every day. I don’t have to push, all I have to do is coach.”

Since spring practice began in early May, Roberts has commuted from West Monroe, La., where he lives with his wife, Kelsey, his 7-year-old daughter, Madison Greene, and Jerry. Roberts said he’s had on his mind on a head coaching job for years, and his family has been helping him on those days when the commute from West Monroe to Natchez seems especially long.

“I could not ask for a better support system,” he said. “They made this possible.”

Roberts said the time he’s spent at his new job has caused him to miss time with his two young children, including the start of Jerry’s T-ball career. Roberts said even at Jerry’s young age, his son has picked up on the importance of his new job as Trinity’s football coach.

“He told me the other day that he was glad I was going to be a football coach,” Roberts said. “(My family) knows how big of a dream this is for me.”

Roberts said his family will be making the move to the Miss-Lou area on June 1. It’s a sort of homecoming for Roberts, who is an alumnus of Vidalia High School. He served a handful of positions on offense and defense while he was a Viking. Roberts spoke with Vikings head coach Jeff Hancock about taking a job at his alma mater as quarterbacks coach where his nephew, Tristan Weatherly, is taking the starting reps under center.

Vidalia not only fosters memories of his days on the football field, but it’s also where he got his start as a coach. Roberts started coaching when his mentor Dee Faircloth gave him a phone call after the death of his father, Jerry Roberts, in 2006.

“One of the things I’ve valued is the relationships I’ve built with my coaches, particularly oach Dee Faircloth at Vidalia,” Roberts said. “My dad passed away when I was 19. I moved back to Vidalia to be with my mom. Coach Faircloth called me on the phone and said, ‘You’re going to coach football with me.’ That was my introduction into coaching.”

The fieldhouse that stands next to Vidalia High School bears Jerry Roberts’ name. At Trinity, the fieldhouse bears the name of Barr Brown, father of one of Graham’s friends, Cole Brown.

“One of the things (Cole) told me right after I took this job is, ‘Our dads have done some great things in this community. Ten years later it’s our turn,’” Graham said.

Back at The Pit, Roberts gathered his team after the game and gave them a postgame speech. Trinity wide receiver Dee Fleming said Roberts is a high-intensity coach, but he is not a “screamer.” Roberts said he doesn’t have to be because of the way his players push themselves.

Now comes the hard work. In the offseason, Graham and the Saints will hit the weightroom. Roberts said Trinity is one of the smallest squads he’s worked with, in terms of the size of the roster, and some of his dual athletes were not able to attend many spring practices. The first-year Saint takes a positive perspective.

“For the most part, I joked with them that I don’t know if I’ve ever had a practice with less than 30 guys,” Roberts said. “That’s been a bit of a challenge. But they’ve made it really easy on me by coming prepared every day to work. They get a lot of reps at practice, so they get in and get a lot of work done.”

While Jerry may have been more interested in the weather-worn tackling dummy than the actual game, his father said the connection with the game he loves is growing.

“I’m a firm believer in how football translates to life lessons,” Roberts said. “He played flag football in West Monroe this year. He has an understanding of how much I love and he loves it. It’s great to start a tradition that teaches life lessons.”