To Northside, Warner Robins isn’t just a rival this year. It could be a spark.

WARNER ROBINS — Daniel “Boone” Williams was no stranger to bitter rivalries when he became the coach at Northside of Warner Robins last year.

Williams coached at Creekside and Hughes — rivals of each other and fellow south Fulton County power Westlake — for 20 years.

But to Williams, nothing compares to Warner Robins-Northside, which kicks off for the 69th time on Friday.

“We pull up to the stadium, and grills are going, and the bands are there,” Williams said. “During warm-ups, the stadium is full.”

Williams is trying to revive a former powerhouse in Northside. The Eagles won 12 region titles and three state championships between 1998 and 2014 but haven’t won either since.

Northside finished its last three seasons at 4-7, 2-8 and 1-9. Arguably more importantly, they haven’t beaten Warner Robins since 2016.

“When you’ve lost that game nine years in a row, everybody just gets antsy,” Williams said. “I think this is the first time that the community feels confident enough to say, ‘Hey, we’ve got a chance,’ so that’s buzzing.”

Williams left Hughes, where he went 63-17 and won a state championship, for Northside last season. The Eagles were coming off a 2-8 finish, including a 0-5 record in region play.

“I had had a good run at (Hughes), but again, let me go see if I can go do it somewhere else, and that was the biggest thing for me coming to Northside,” Williams said. “I think the history and the tradition and all that kind of thing was a draw. The fan support, community support.

“You know, in metro Atlanta, it’s so transient and so competitive, and a place like here, it supersedes all that when it comes to how many people really know about this place.”

Results didn’t improve in Williams’ first season, as the Eagles managed just one win in 2025. Williams identified several mistakes to correct before Year 2.

One of Williams’ mistakes, as he described it, was putting the cart before the horse. Williams tried to operate Northside the way he did at Hughes, but his new team wasn’t prepared for it.

“I can’t make this place that place,” Williams said. “I had to meet this place where it was to grow it to that, and when I came in, that was kind of the notion I took: ‘This is what I did at (Hughes), so it should work here.’ Absolutely not.”

Williams saw a better version of Northside this summer. The Eagles returned more starters than they did in 2024, boosted their weight room numbers and simply got bigger.

But the biggest difference Williams has seen from last year is his team’s mentality.

“When we got on the bus here (last year), I think there was a lot of uncertainty,” Williams said. “In some games, when we got on, I think the kids already knew we lost.”

That wasn’t a problem when Williams’ team got off the bus for its 2026 season opener against Eagle’s Landing, which beat Northside to open 2025.

“They had redemption on their mind,” Williams said. “They knew how much they worked, how hard they worked and what they worked for.”

Northside won its season opener 42-6. It lost to Mays last week, setting up a potentially pivotal game on a rivalry stage.

“I told my team this morning, I said, ‘On Saturday morning, you’re either going to wake up 2-1 or 1-2,’” Williams said.