Erik Hartman has been on the sidelines at Ratliff Stadium as a player and as an assistant.
Now, he returns as the head football coach of his alma mater.
Hartman takes over the Broncho program after Dusty Ortiz’s sudden departure in May to Creekview High School.
It’s a reunion for the Odessa High graduate who played quarterback for the Bronchos in the early 1990s before graduating in 1993.
He returned as an assistant coach for Odessa High from 2001-2006.
Now, he comes back having previously served as the offensive coordinator at Corsicana.
Hartman was recently introduced as the Bronchos’ new head coach.
“Coming back home, I’m super excited,” Hartman said. “Growing up in Odessa and now having the opportunity to come back and lead your alma mater, I’m super stoked to get in here and lead our guys. Our guys are doing a great job of showing up for strength and conditioning camp and they’re wanting to learn. I enjoy that. the coaching staff is energetic and ready to go. It’s exciting to see this. Everyone’s excited to see a hometown guy come back and lead this team. it gives you a boost in the arm. This opportunity is something I’ve been looking forward to.”
As a player, it never crossed his mind that he would eventually come back as the OHS head coach.
“I never thought that (back then),” Hartman said. “I had some great coaches here. … Those influences of having great coaches made me want to come back here. Now I want to be an influence to the guys we have here. Hopefully, they’ll want to become coaches someday and want to come back and coach here as well.”
Hartman played college football at Angelo State.
Hartman only has a short time to complete his coaching staff as practices begin Aug. 5.
However, with his knowledge of the area and high school, Hartman knows that aspect will help make his transition easier.
“I know how our kids are,” Hartman said. “Growing up through the system, I know how I was and people that I played with were hard-nosed kids. They can get coached hard. But also, coming back here, I see the things that are challenges so it’s easier to come back and understand those situations and how to take those challenges head-on.”
Odessa High is coming off a 5-4 record from 2023 that saw the Bronchos come up just one place short of making the state playoffs for the first time since 2013.
The team enters this season having graduated key players, including wide receiver Ivan Carreon who’s now playing at the University of Oklahoma.
That doesn’t mean the cupboards are bare on offense as the Bronchos bring back quarterback Mikey Cota and wide receiver Andrew Rodriguez.
“We have a good crew coming back,” Hartman said. “We have Mikey Cota coming back who threw for over 3,000 yards last year and a good receiving corps coming back and a solid offensive line. Our defense is shaping up. We have a good crew coming back. What helps is that confidence. When you have a confident team, you know they’ll play better.”
Hartman says the players have already bought in.
“I feel like our kids have bought in with the new change and learning a new offense and defense,” Hartman said. “I think the biggest challenge right now is getting all of our coaches set and starting late. We have to install our offense and defense. That’s a tough thing of making sure we get quality coaches here. We’ve had quality coaches here before but we’re trying to get our staff filled up and bring in the staff members that will fit … Our coaching staff has been phenomenal of running the camp so our coaching staff is already doing a good job, but we need to make sure we’re learning everything before the season starts and that’s going to be the toughest challenge.”
Odessa High will begin its 2024 season at 7 p.m. Aug. 29 against Amarillo High at Ratliff Stadium.
