Meet the Coaches
Our coaching staff brings championship experience, proven leadership, and a relentless commitment to developing student athletes both on and off the field. Every coach plays a vital role in shaping the culture, discipline, and success of Lovejoy Football.
Todd Dodge
Athletic Director
Head Football Coach
Todd Dodge
Athletic Director
Head Football Coach
Coach Dodge is entering his 38th year of coaching. During his 38 years, he has won 7 Football State Championships with a career record of 248-71, and a playoff record of 71-8. Coach Dodge is the only HS coach to have 3 back-to-back state championships with 2 different programs. He has coached 9 quarterbacks who have been selected as Texas 6A State Offensive Player of the Year. In 2002, Dodge was inducted into the THSCA Hall of Honor, and was inducted into the TX HS Football Hall of Fame in 2005. Coach Dodge has been named State 6A Coach of the Year 5 times and National Coach of the Year 4 times. In the 2021 season, he led his team to set the record for the highest scoring 6A offense in history with 908 points.
His coaching career started at Rockwall as the QB coach. He was promoted to Offensive Coordinator at McKinney and then went to the University of North Texas to serve as the QB Coach. His first Head Coaching position was at Cameron Yoe. From there, he went to Newman Smith and then Fossil Ridge before beginning his unforgettable career at Southlake Carroll.
Dodge left Southlake Carroll to take the role of head coach at the University of North Texas, then traveled to the University of Pittsburgh to be the QB Coach. Dodge left Pittsburgh to return to his home state of Texas and high school football, landing the head coaching positions at Marble Falls and then Westlake, where he repeated his state championship-winning program at Southlake.
Coach Dodge’s theory of coaching focuses on these fundamentals:
- Program Objectives
- Player Placement
- Coaches Expectations
- Game Day Expectations
- Goal Boards
- Off Season
- Spring Ball
- Summer
- In Season
After being hired as Lovejoy ISD’s Athletic Director and Head Football Coach, Coach Dodge said this:
“This opportunity for Elizabeth and I is absolutely answered prayers. Our five grandchildren, our children Riley and Molly, and Elizabeth’s mother and sister will all be within 20 miles of us. That is truly a blessing. Thank you to Katie Kordel, her team, and the Lovejoy ISD Board of Trustees for having confidence in me to lead the Lovejoy Athletic Program. I am absolutely ready to pour myself into these student athletes here at Lovejoy. The legacy of excellence has been set. We will do everything to honor those hard-working coaches and athletes who have come before us. I have been a fan of Lovejoy Athletics for some time and to watch this program grow under the leadership of LISD’s former athletic directors was truly amazing. I am very excited to be the Athletic Director and Head Football Coach at Lovejoy ISD.”
Brandon Murdock
Associate Head Coach Offensive Line
Recruiting Coordinator
Brandon Murdock
Coach Murdock is entering his 21st year of coaching and his 3rd year at Lovejoy HS. Previously at Austin Westlake, Marble Falls, and Southlake Carroll HS, he has a long history of coaching high-profile Texas high school football programs. Known for his systematic approach to offensive line play, he is an inaugural member of the Texas 50, a designation that recognizes the top assistant high school football coaches in the state.
Coach Murdock has been part of 5 Texas 6A-State Championships, including the 3-Peat at Westlake from 2019-2021. In 2021, the Westlake offense set the All-Time Texas 6A Scoring Record with 908 points over 16 games. He was also part of the Southlake Carroll Championship teams of 2011 & 2006.
Over the last 12 years, Coach Murdock has produced a combined 4 High School All-American Lineman and RB’s, 30 All-State Players, 46 1st TEAM All-District players, and Protected 2 National HS Players of the Year. During this time, he helped produce 27 college offensive linemen and RB’s, including 17 at the Division 1 Level.
Coach Murdock graduated from Carroll High School in Southlake, TX and received his B.S. in Secondary Education-Social Studies from Oklahoma State University. He is married to his wife, Tiffany, and has two daughters. Coach Murdock also serves as a campus sponsor for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Guy Ament
Defensive Line
Guy Ament
Coach Guy Ament is in his second season at Lovejoy High School. He brings 20 years of coaching experience at both the college and high school levels. He grew up in the small town of Bunker Hill, Illinois, and graduated from Bunker Hill High School, where he was a three-sport athlete.
Coach Ament attended Texas Lutheran University, where he was a three-year letterman on the football team. Following graduation, he began coaching in 2006. After TLU, he joined the staff at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, from 2007 through the 2010 season, where he coached the defensive line all four years, as well as the kickoff and kickoff return teams, helping the Pipers achieve one of their best seasons since 1997. After four years in Minnesota, he returned to Texas and became the defensive line coach at Howard Payne University in Brownwood, and was named Defensive Coordinator in 2014.
After the 2015 season, he left HPU for Marble Falls High School, where he coached outside linebackers during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Then, he worked at Brandeis High School in San Antonio, where he coached the defensive line for three seasons, helping the Broncos achieve an undefeated regular season and advance to the fourth round of the playoffs for two consecutive years.
In 2021, Coach Ament moved to Sandra Day O’Connor High School in San Antonio, coaching the defensive line. In 2025, he came to Lovejoy, where he coaches defensive ends.
Tommy Bowden
Linebackers
Tommy Bowden
Coach Bowden is in his second year at Lovejoy High School. Before joining Lovejoy, he served as an assistant football coach at Rockport-Fulton High School and Arlington Martin High School.
A 2019 graduate of Brownwood High School, Coach Bowden was a three-sport athlete, competing in football, basketball, and track. He served as a football team captain during his junior and senior years, earning First Team All-District honors and being named the Big Country Offensive Player of the Year. In track and field, he was a state finalist in three events.
Coach Bowden continued his football career at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, where he was a member of the program’s leadership council for three years. He earned First Team All-Conference honors as a safety and was part of the team’s National Championship in 2021. He graduated in 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts in History.
He has been married to his wife, Claire, for three years, and they welcomed their daughter, Scottie, in February 2026.
David Branscom
Defensive Coordinator
David Branscom
David Branscom is entering his 26th year of coaching. This will be his third season as the defensive coordinator at Lovejoy High School. Before coming to Lovejoy, he spent 1 year at Grapevine and 2 years at Allen as the defensive coordinator/special teams coordinator. Before Allen, David spent 4 years as the head coach at Brandeis High School, with a record of 37-10. In 2019, his team recorded the best football season win record in Brandeis Football history (13-1).
David received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton, TX, and was a part of their very first football team in 1998. After graduation, he began his coaching career as a coach for the Crusaders. He spent 14 seasons helping coach the UMHB football team to a 154-22 record, losing only 5 games in the last 5 seasons. David was honored as the first member inducted into the Crusader Football Alumni Hall of Honor. He also leaves a legacy, having coached two DIII National Defensive Players of the Year: Jerrell Freeman and Javicz Jones.
David is married to Courtney Branscom, a teacher. They have two sons, Aidan (14) and Maximus (11)
Caleb Hill
Assistant Office-Y’s
Caleb Hill
Coach Hill is in his sixth year of teaching and coaching high school football and baseball. He previously coached at Corsicana High School and Brownwood High School before joining the Lovejoy Leopards in the fall of 2025. While serving in multiple coaching roles across both sports, his primary focus within the football program will be with the Y position group.
Coach Hill graduated from Brenham High School in 2015 as a three-sport athlete in football, basketball, and baseball. He served as captain of the football team his junior and senior years and helped lead Brenham to a state championship appearance in 2013, earning TSWA All-State honors at quarterback. Coach Hill continued his athletic career at the University of Montana, where he played football and earned a degree in Accounting in 2019.
Coach Hill married his wife, Paige, in 2023, and they have one daughter, Charlotte.
Bryce MacDougall
Assistant Offensive Line
Bryce MacDougall
Joining Lovejoy in 2026, Bryce MacDougall is in his 8th year of coaching. Previously, he coached at Castleberry High School, Canyon High School, and Pieper High School, primarily working with the offensive line and serving as run game coordinator.
During his time at Pieper, the offense averaged over 40 points per game, helping lead the program to multiple district championships and deep playoff runs. Throughout his career, he has developed numerous All-District offensive linemen, as well as athletes who have gone on to compete at the collegiate level. He is known for emphasizing physical, disciplined offensive line play, along with detailed preparation in the run game.
Originally from Hickory Creek, Texas, Coach MacDougall is a graduate of Texas Christian University. He is married to his wife, Kennedy, an elementary school teacher, who is also a Horned Frog. In their free time, they enjoy traveling across Texas in search of barbecue spots featured on the Texas Monthly Top BBQ list.
Santiago Noyola
Assistant Quarterbacks
Santiago Noyola
Coach Noyola’s football journey began at just seven years old in his hometown of Monterrey, Mexico, where he quickly developed a passion for the game. His dedication led him to attend Coach Dodge’s prestigious passing camp, an experience that ultimately paved the way for his move to Texas. Noyola went on to attend Westlake High School in Austin, where he played quarterback under Coach Dodge and was part of the program’s 2019 Texas 6A State Championship team.
Building on that foundation, Noyola attended Texas A&M University, graduating in 2024 with a Bachelor of Science in Sport Management. While in college, he continued developing his coaching expertise, working at Wellborn Middle School in College Station. There, he coached both quarterbacks and defensive backs as well as sprinters in track, while also serving as a substitute teacher across multiple grade levels.
After graduating, Noyola continued his coaching and teaching career at Willow Springs Middle School and is now in his second year at Lovejoy High School.
Elliot Parkman
Running Backs
Run-Game Coordinator
Head Freshman Football Coach
Elliot Parkman
Elliot Parkman was born in Pontiac, Michigan, and raised in McKinney, Texas, where he attended McKinney High School. Before earning a BA in journalism from the University of North Texas, Coach Parkman spent time at Howard Payne, where he played fullback, and at Texas State, where he competed for the rugby program.
Before Lovejoy, Coach Parkman worked for Performance Course, McKinney High School, Frisco Lawler Middle School, and Frisco Liberty High School.
Coach Parkman currently resides in Frisco, Texas, with his fiancée Claire. He is the son of Ralph and Pam Parkman and the brother of Matthew Parkman, all of whom are former educators.
Darrell Preston
Linebackers
Darrell Preston
A native of Mt. Vernon, TX, Coach Preston played baseball at the University of Texas-Arlington where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology with a minor in Biology and History. He began his coaching career in Fort Worth at Paschal High School in 2007, where he stayed for 12 years. In 2018, Coach Preston moved to Wakeland HS to become the Head Baseball Coach. He’s been happily married to his wife, April, for 21 years, and they have two beautiful children, Dallas (17) and Addison (14).
Coaching Experience:
2026-present Lovejoy HS- Sam Linebackers/ Track & Field
2023-2025 Wakeland HS-Defensive Pass Game Coordinator; Safeties/ Track & Field
2021-2023 Wakeland HS-Offensive Line; Assistant Baseball
2018-2021Wakeland HS- Head Baseball Coach
2007-2018 Paschal HS- Boys Athletic Coordinator, Head Baseball Coach, Quarterbacks Coach
Athletic Experience:
2001-2004 University of Texas at Arlington- Baseball
1997-2000 Mt. Vernon HS- Football, Basketball and Baseball
Brad Shea
Defensive Line
Brad Shae
Coach Shea has been coaching for 26 years, this being his 2nd year at Lovejoy High School. Within those 26 years, he has worked at both the collegiate and high school levels. A graduate of the University of Central Oklahoma, he received his Bachelor of Arts in History while playing football from 1996 – 2001, and his Master of Education while coaching there from 2001 – 2003. Coach Shea teaches in the Social Studies department at Lovejoy. He and his wife, Catherine, have two children, William and Addyson.
Vince Williams
Defensive Backs
Specials Teams Coordinator
Vince Williams
Vince Williams is in his third year at Lovejoy High School. This is his eleventh year of coaching and twelfth year of teaching. Previously, he spent eight seasons at Lancaster, where he was the defensive backs coach, pass game coordinator, and the Boys Soccer head coach. He helped Lancaster’s football team to six playoff runs, including three state quarterfinal appearances and two district championships. He also helped improve the defense to an area top 10 defense for multiple years.
Coach Williams graduated from The Colony High School, where he lettered in football and powerlifting. He attended the University of Oklahoma, earning his degree in mathematics, and later received his master’s degree in curriculum and instruction with a STEM and math focus from the University of North Texas at Dallas.
Vince has been married to his wife, DeAnna, who is also an Oklahoma graduate, for six years. They have two sons, Vince “Tripp”, III (3 years old) and Shiloh (2 years old).
ZACKARY ZIMMERMANN
Defensive Backs
Zack Zimmermann
Zack Zimmermann is entering his 12th year of coaching high school football in the state of Texas and currently serves as the Cornerbacks Coach at Lovejoy High School, a role he has held for the past three seasons. Prior to his time at the high school level, Zimmermann gained valuable experience at the collegiate level, coaching at Santa Barbara City College in Santa Barbara, California.
A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Moon Area High School and then continued his academic journey at Slippery Rock University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Sport Management. He later completed his master’s degree in Sport Administration at Georgia State University.
Off the field, Zimmermann is a dedicated family man. He and his wife, Lauren, are proud parents of three sons—Kellan, Bryce, and Micah—who are a constant source of motivation and support in his coaching career.