In a move that has the support of a plethora of people, DeVondre Bazemore has been named the new Head Football Coach at Smithfield.

Bazemore has been in the school for two years as a teacher and was the Packers' defensive coordinator last season and prior to that was an assistant at Woodrow Wilson High in Portsmouth. He also serves as Smithfield's assistant athletic director.

A graduate of Churchland High in Portsmouth, Bazemore, is 27 years old, continuing a streak of young coaches in the '757' area code and makes him one of the select few around the state in that position under the age of 30. At Smithfield, he takes over for Mike Newhall, who went 3-7 last season and 8-13 in his two years at the school before resigning following the 2019 campaign.

Bazemore has learned from the likes of Dontrell Leonard at Churchland and Newhall.

"At 27 years old, I feel like I'm as prepared as anyone else," Bazemore exclaimed. "I've been preparing for this for a while. I've always learned from the coaches I coached under, always asked questions, and stayed around. I wanted to know the stuff you have to do besides football. I feel like I'm very prepared."

One of those things outside of X's and O's is recruiting.

The mark of a good coach isn't always their win-loss record. Sometimes how they impacted the young men they coached has as much if not more meaning. One of the biggest, if not the biggest impacts, a coach can have is getting their athletes to college, using football as a tool to succeed in life.

"At the end of the day, if you're a baller, they are going to see you," Bazemore said. "Football is a vessel for me to aid young men."

One of the ways Bazemore plans to showcase his kids, outside of the camp circuit, is by playing teams with players that hold offers from Football Bowl Subdivision programs and Power 5 schools. Games such as their scheduled one against Norview, who boasts the Everette brothers among others with FBS attention.

Smithfield last made the playoffs in 2018 before being defeated by Lake Taylor 63-21. However, they're also one of the few in Hampton Roads to beat the Titans, doing so in the 2017 postseason before Lake Taylor won back-to-back region titles on their way to reaching the State Championship game each of the past two years.

The Packers missed the playoffs last season for the first time in five years, something that certainly has been brought up and is sure to be again. Bazemore looks to get them turned around sooner than later, beginning with the 2020 campaign and he's not lowering the bar of expectations in any way.

"That (a State Championship) is always the goal. We don't want to sell ourselves short," Bazemore commented.

"We definitely are going to take it step-by-step. We just want to be a lot better than last year and that's going to start the road to winning the district, to the playoffs, and to a State Championship."

A key piece to Smithfield's season will be the play of senior athlete Chris Gundy, a versatile playmaker expected to line up at various positions for the Packers.

Smithfield also returns a few key pieces on defense in the form of junior Emori Jones and senior Jaquan Williams.

Bazemore will be tested as a coach early, and it won't even be on the field. A recent VHSL ruling halted off-season programs for the time being amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

"It's tough," Bazemore said with a slight sigh. "It's something that we have have to deal with because we are here and someone has to do it, but there's no complaining about what's happening.

"What we have been doing is learning the game. We have been on Zoom together, catching up and watching film. Guys have been going out on their own. which is what it's going to take if they want to go play in college. You have to train on your own sometimes."

Bazemore comes in with a pre-established bond with the kids, something critical right now since teams can't meet and gain that rapport that traditionally would occur when a new Head Coach is appointed.

"We have bonded a lot over the two years," Bazemore said. "I see almost every kid that comes through the school in my freshman health class, so I see most of the kids, and we bond, talk sports, life, and a lot of things."

Bazemore says their two biggest Bay Rivers District challenges are Lafayette and York, which enjoyed an unblemished regular season in 2019. Smithfield has not defeated Lafayette in seven seasons, while the Packers have dropped the last two meetings to York.