Matt Vines
COUSHATTA – Red River football coach Byron Keller has accepted the head football coach and athletic director job at Winnfield Senior High, the school announced via its Facebook page Thursday.

Keller guided the Bulldogs the past two seasons, winning a total of 10 games, including a seven-win campaign in 2024.

The 2024 Red River squad captured the program’s first district title since 2005 with a perfect mark in District 3-2A, which included a regular season and first-round playoff wins against Winnfield.

Red River won to the tune of 50-6 in the regular season and 48-6 in the playoffs against the Tigers.

The two Winnfield wins were part of a six-game winning streak – all coming against District 3-2A opponents, which earned Keller and his coaches Staff of the Year.

Winnfield went 4-7 this past season, and it’s four wins against Jonesboro-Hodge, Caldwell Parish, Rosepine and Many came by an average of about 30 points.

But the Tigers struggled to hang with the district’s best, falling to Red River and Lakeside by at least scores in each matchup.

Keller was the defensive coordinator at Winnfield in 2020 and 2021 before serving as the defensive coordinator at Many and then the head coach of Red River.

In Keller’s only full season as defensive coordinator at Winnfield in 2021, the Tigers won seven games and a first-round playoff game as a No. 13 seed.

Red River defensive assistant takes Many head job
If anybody knows how to rebuild Many into the Class 2A power that it was for more than a decade, Tyler Hassell would certainly be on that list.

The Many defensive coordinator from 2018-2021 helped the Tigers to two state championships during that time, in addition to being an assistant coach on the Many staff prior to that.

Hassell, who was a defensive assistant at Red River this season, accepted the Many head job.

Hassell was a key piece to Red River’s defensive success that saw the Bulldogs win their first district title since 2005. Red River held seven opponents to 13 points or less, winning all seven of those games as the Bulldog finished with a 7-5 record and a second-round playoff appearance.

Now Hassell will face off against his former coaching staff as Many and Red River are both in District 3-2A.

Hassell left Many to follow head coach Jess Curtis to Natchitoches Central in 2023 before landing at Red River this past season.

Many head coach Dillon Barrett guided the Tigers to the quarterfinals in 2023 but suffered through a winless season in 2024 in which the Tigers were badly outscored in every game.

Hassell told The Shreveport Times that he inherited a roster with just 38 players but has taken to the hallways to rustle up an additional 20 athletes who have now joined the team.

“The town of Many loves its football, and our plan is to reestablish our program as a top contender in Division III,” Hassell told The Shreveport Times. “I’m in a unique situation in Many. I’ve only been away from Many for about two years … so there’s (not) a learning curve to get to your administrators, teachers, and athletes.

“My future seniors (Class of 2026) were freshman when I was previously at Many. This will be a huge advantage for us to set a strong foundation and a level of trust.”