Even as a football player at Cato-Meridian High School in the early 1990s, Jason Trousdale knew he wanted to coach.

And he wasn't afraid to offer his assistance to the Blue Devils' coaching staff, much to their chagrin.

"The coaches would kind of joke with me," he said. "They would say, 'Jason why don't you just play, we'll coach, maybe when you get older, you can coach.'"

Now a few years older and wiser, Trousdale finally gets his chance to be a high school football head coach - and what a chance it is - taking over the reins at defending state Class D champion Weedsport.

After Cato-Meridian, Trousdale played football and basketball at Cayuga Community College and transferred to SUNY Brockport.

Characterizing his leadership skills, he was a football captain at both schools. After graduation, Trousdale was an assistant coach at Weedsport for four seasons.

Trousdale is replacing Cal Mosher, who took over a quality program and brought it to heights never imagined.

"It's rare that you win a state championship and then expect next year, you're going to win it again," said Mosher, who remains as the Warriors' athletic director. "The positive of his situation is he's been at Weedsport for four years, he knows the guys. The football players know how to win. They expect to win. He's not going into a school where they've been losing, and he has to turn the attitude around."

This is the situation Trousdale, who has never been a head coach, inherits. Trousdale says he's ready for the challenge.

"When he (Mosher) stepped down, I was really excited about having the opportunity to apply for the job," he said. "Especially with our success of taking over a program as far as pressure goes, there's going to be a lot of pressure but I feel I'm ready for the job and real excited about the opportunity to be a head coach."

Mosher pointed to a number of qualities that led the school to hiring Trousdale.

"He was an outstanding football player himself," Mosher said. "He understands the game; he had a nice college career and became an assistant at Weedsport so he has a combination of a good background in the sport playing and coaching. There is to some extent the loyalty factor. In my mind, he's one of the main guys you look at. I felt he deserved a chance."

Taking over after a state championship has its benefits. Interest and expectations are high, but Weedsport fans know last year's title season was a culmination of special circumstances difficult to duplicate.

It's a daunting task. The Warriors' championship season created unforgettable memories: fantastic comebacks, classic plays and players whose names will always bring a smile to fans' faces.

"I don't think the community and the people who know the program are going to be disappointed if they don't win the state championship," Mosher said. "I don't think anyone would have expected that. I think the expectations at Weedsport are the kids act the right way on the field, behave properly and win or lose, we like to be competitive. From what I've seen, they're doing a great job and are right on track."

At 29, Trousdale is a little more than a decade older than his players. Today, there are more young high school coaches and Trousdale believes his age is not a factor.

"I think as far as age goes, I think experience as far as maybe the play calling or making the substitutions and adjustments, I don't know if the age matters too much," he said. "I think you actually have to be put in that position to make decisions."

So while some may believe Trousdale has it easy, taking over a program of Weedsport's stature, he disagrees.

"I'm actually putting a lot of pressure on myself," Trousdale said. "I think as far as the work ethic, as just not myself but the other assistant coaches, have put in a lot time to make sure we're ready to go on Sept. 2."

Trousdale knows the defending state-champion Warriors will be a target this season, riding a 13-game winning streak. Weedsport can't expect its opponents to lay down because of the past. Trousdale has to establish a mindset for his players that this is a new season.

"Right now I'm happy with the way things are going," Trousdale said. "But you can never get satisfied as a coach. Once you get satisfied, then you never get better, you never improve. Coach Mosher was that type of coach; he was constantly on the guys, making the kids better and that's what I've tried to do."

After months of planning, Trousdale and the players are anxious to defend their state championship.

"We're excited, I think everybody is excited about the season," Trousdale said.

"We just want to get this thing going, we're a little antsy."

So when the Warriors take the field tonight against rival Port Byron, Trousdale will be going through a range of emotions.

"I think I'm going to have a mixture of nervous and excited," he said. "I really hope I can do the job everyone is expecting us to do. What I think you'll get out of us is a team that works tremendously hard. It's going to take a tough team to beat us. We're not going to lay down for anybody."