photo by: Conner Becker/Journal-World

Newly-hired Lawrence High offensive assistant and pass game coordinator Taylor Stuart shares a word with a staff member during a summer practice on Tuesday, June 6, 2023, at Lawrence High School.

A familiar face has turned up as the Lawrence High football’s summer practices warm up.

Third-year LHS coach Clint Bowen added Lawrence native Taylor Stuart as an offensive assistant and passing game coach for the Chesty Lions heading into the fall.

Stuart, who coached safeties and tight ends at his alma mater Free State (class of ’09) from 2015 to 2021, spent the previous two seasons as an assistant to Olathe North head coach Chris McCartney. The return to the area is a true homecoming for Stuart, who graduated from Baker in 2015.

When a physical education instructor position opened up this spring, Stuart got in touch with longtime friend and LHS athletic director Mike Gillman right away.

“Moving back home was a great opportunity,” Stuart said. “At a school like Lawrence High, it was hard to pass up.”

Stuart’s walking from one tradition-centered football program to another. High expectations, established by consecutive winning seasons from Bowen since his hire in 2021, drew Stuart back home to guide and play a part in the current operation at LHS.

The operation? Bouncing back from a disappointing substate loss at Derby that ended last year’s campaign at 6-4 in Wichita.

“We started targeting that in the summer,” Stuart said. “We let them know how important it is to be a Lawrence High Lion and wear that black helmet with the white stripe. I think they come in understanding how important it is and how special it is.”

Through his first few days on staff, Stuart has worked primarily with the receiving corps. With several returners vying for playing time, the position group is learning the offense at a similar pace and building chemistry quickly as the summer progresses.

Stuart is looking forward to developing the LHS backfield alongside newly hired assistant Logan Fritz, who spent the last three seasons as head coach at Easton-Pleasant Ridge in Class 2A.

Communication, something Stuart and his family experienced throughout the hiring process, is a major incentive for the newly added assistant as he climbs aboard the program.

“I think the biggest strength is the camaraderie,” Stuart said. “I think that’s the one thing (Bowen) pushes. We’re a family and when I talked with the administrators through all my interviews and everything that’s what they pressed. It’s a real tight-knit community.”