TOPSHAM — Over the years, Frank True has literally bled for the Mt. Ararat High School football team. 

Since his graduation in 1986, the Mt. Ararat alum, former Bath Iron Works employee, fireman and now the Fire Department Program Manager, has stayed close, assisting the Eagles football program, becoming the head coach, and later coaching in the Brunswick Area Youth Football League, where he helped mold future Mt. Ararat and Brunswick high school football players. 

Recently, Mt. Ararat athletic director Geoff Godo announced True had been hired to return to lead the Eagles on the sidelines for the 2019 season, a campaign that will certainly begin a new era, not just for the Topsham school but for Maine high school football in general. 

“I am excited to be back,” said True while on a trip to upstate New York as part of his manager’s job. 

“He is a guy who wants kids to play football,” said Godo. “Frank engulfs himself in the sport and wants to do what he can to grow the sport. That is a valuable asset for Mt. Ararat. He sees our vision and he understands and will bust his butt to make it happen here.”

True has met many of his incoming players, some that he coached the past few years in the BAYFL that will be freshmen or sophomores this season. He ran a week-long camp earlier this summer, where 23 players came out to learn a new system, and so far more than 30 have signed up for the fall football season, which begins with the first practice on Aug. 19. 

This year’s Maine Principals’ Association season opens the era of eight-man football in Maine. Over the past few seasons, high schools have come all so close to losing their football programs, with low turnout numbers and injuries during the season causing issues — and even forfeits. 

Mt. Ararat is one of those programs that will play eight-man football in 2019, as low numbers and on-the-field struggles has seen the proud team struggle for respectability. 

First round

True, 51, was the head coach of Mt. Ararat from 2011-14 after assisting former coaches Erik Sargent and Mark LaFountain from 2003-10. His first two campaigns at the helm saw winless seasons, but in 2013 his Eagles put together a solid 4-4 record and advanced to the postseason, falling to York in a quarterfinal.

True moved over to Hyde School in Bath for a couple seasons, coaching the football squad. After the Connecticut-based Hyde-Woodstock school combined with Hyde-Bath, True took his lifelong football knowledge to the BAYFL. During the past few years, he has coached the young players coming through, with solid showings. 

“I coached the 5th-and 6th-grade squad, then the 7th and 8th team and we had some success,” True said. 

Moving back up to the high school seemed to come at a perfect time for True, who recently pulled up stakes in Harpswell for a new house in Topsham in 2017 with his wife of nearly 30 years, Lisa. He has raised his sons — Mt. Ararat graduates Frankie (Class of 2010) and Derek (2011) — who plan on helping their father on the sidelines this year. 

True feels that he left the BAYFL in a good place. 

“That was a big thing to me, in that I was able to train the coaches at that level, leaving me with a lot of confidence that things are being taught the right way” said True. “At the high school, we will be running a similar system as we do in BAYFL, so the transition will be a bit easier. I was able to get back to those grass roots again.”

After True departed Mt. Ararat, the program was led by Mark LaFountain (second tenure, 2015), O’Neil LaPlante (2016-17), and last year by co-coaches Matt Haskell and Tom Quick. The Eagles made the Class B South postseason the last two years after going 3-5 in 2017 and 2-6 in 2018. But lopsided setbacks to Marshwood and Kennebunk, respectively, ended those campaigns in the quarterfinals. 

True said his incoming freshman class is large, with “15-16” signing up for the 2019 season. Now comes the hard part — putting it all together and learning the strengths of his upperclassmen while embracing eight-man football. 

“I don’t know a lot of the high school players yet, but I had many of them in camp this summer,” True said. 

A plus this year, according to True, is eight-man football. Mt. Ararat has the numbers to field a varsity team along with a full jayvee slate. 

“It will allow our younger players to play against players of the same levels and develop,” said True of the jayvee squad that will likely feature mostly freshmen and sophomores. 

As far as adapting to eight-man football … “I think it will be exciting, and with our numbers, we hope to compete like champions,” said True.

Mt. Ararat picked up some experience this summer, playing in a 6-on-6, no pad scrimmage day with Maranacook, Gray-New Gloucester, Old Orchard Beach and Sacopee Valley. 

“We competed well, looked good,” said True, whose Eagles open the 2019 high school varsity football season at Gray-New Gloucester on Sept. 6. 

“If you watch eight-man football on video or in person, you won’t really know the difference. It is football, and it will be exciting,” said Godo. “We feel eight-man will allow us to build our program and create excitement.”

According to True, his players are excited to get into pads and see where the season takes them. And, they have already put the past behind them, not remembering that since 2011 Mt. Ararat has a .202 winning percentage (14-55) with just three playoff appearances. No, the future is now, and the Eagles are looking forward.

“We realize that eight-man football is intended to jump-start programs that have struggled. That is what we hope to do at Mt. Ararat. We started recruiting early, hoping to bring in more freshmen and maybe those players that used to play but left the program will chose to make a return and help our program succeed no the field,” said True. 

After opening on the road, Mt. Ararat hosts Maranacook on Sept. 14 and Ellsworth on Sept. 21. The regular season concludes Oct. 26, with the eight-man football state championship slated to be held Nov. 16.

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