The Booster Redux December 2023

Feature Pg. 2 Adding a modern touch

Sports Pg. 4

Opinion Pg. 3 Basic-haters

Swing for the title

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The Booster Redux Pittsburg High School

Pittsburg, KS

1978 E. 4th Street

Vol. 106 Issue 1

A breath of fresh air How vaping is being handled in our school is not a new phenomena,” Staley said.

“However, getting those drugs through vaping has escalated very quickly because of how easy it is to hide and how accessible it is.”

According to Kelynn Heardt, the principal at PHS, the intent is not to just assign consequences and discipline, but to also help students overcome this issue.

“In trying to prevent students from vaping, I think we have set up consequences for those actions as a deterrent,” Elliot said. “We also try to have conversations with students when appropriate about some of the dangers of what it could possibly do.”

According to a Truth Initiative survey completed in August of 2021, four of five young people that have vaped admitted that they did to cope with their anxiety, depression, and stress.

“I believe there are a couple of reasons kids vape,” Johnson said. “One is that I perceive it as easy for underage individuals to access and that vapes are also discreet. They are small and do not leave behind a smokey odor. Secondly, I believe that is a way that some students use to cope with stress or other things going on in their life.”

Last school year, there was one vape detector in the school and it effectively detected when vape devices were

being used, which according to Jeff Johnson, led to the decision to add more. gy department “When our technology acquired some funds, the decision was made to add vape detectors in all locations of the school to help address hink that the issue,” Johnson said. “I think ial to be a the detectors have the potential deterrent from vaping at school.”” d Vape detectors are now located all throughout the building in lockerr rooms and bathrooms. The amount off d vaping detected has already decreased significantly from the beginning of school to now.

“The sensors will allow us to determine if we have a problem with vape use in our building and how widespread it is,” Heardt said. “Then we can determine what we can do to help students who might be addicted to tobacco or other substances.”

The vape detectors are not just to catch people and punish them, but also to help the administration identify the students struggling with vaping and help them understand the bad effects.

“We run into kids every week that call for help,” Staley said. “When you see them that desperate it’s pretty powerful, you don’t see students do that very often.”

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Words by | Hailey Gray Before this school year, PHS administration added more vape detectors within the school. The goal with the detectors is to try and keep the students from using vape devices within the school.

The admin that are responsible for handling the discipline for students that are caught vaping are Trevor Elliot, Kris Crotts and Jeff Johnson. According to the school’s handbook, discipline can start with three days of in-school suspension and increase to out-of-school suspension depending on the type of vape device. For each time being caught, the consequence increases.

“I think vaping is an issue nationwide that needs to be addressed,” Elliot said.

“The medical issues that are coming from initial studies, as well as the addiction issues that are going along with it.”

Jeff Staley is the athletic director at PHS. Student-athletes’ consequences when caught have the regular school suspension in addition to the athletic suspension. For the first offense, students can’t play for 21 calendar days.

For the second offense, students can’t play for 42 days. For the third offense, students are restricted for 365 days from extra-curricular activities.

“Kids using tobacco products or THC

Graphic by | Heather Mowdy

New Role: Two teachers become a part of the administration staff Words by | Heather Mowdy Two new assistant principals have joined the Pittsburg High School administration staff this year; Trevor Elliot and Kris Crotts.

Elliot has been teaching in the Pittsburg school district for 11 years and has coached for 15 years. Crotts has been teaching in the school district for six years.

“I wanted to apply to this position because of how important PHS has been in my life, both as a teacher and a student,” Elliot said.

“The opportunity to be an administrator here to help students, staff, and the community

was something I was excited to be a part of.”

After being a math teacher, Crotts was ready for a new challenge.

“I think I can help take what’s already a great place and make it even better,” Crotts said. “I really like our admin team and our staff and our teachers here. I want to do what I can to serve PHS; the students and the staff.”

As director or lead teacher of PASS Academy, Elliot has had experience with some administrative roles; something he enjoyed and wanted more of.

“This has been something I have been

working towards for quite some time,” Elliot said. “I have been a part of this school either as a student, coach, or teacher for twenty of the past twenty-one years and I am very excited for this new opportunity.”

Both Elliot and Crotts are ready for the new change and are looking forward to the challenge.

“I’m looking forward to stepping in to help out in some areas that I feel like I could help, but also in some areas that can grow and get better,” Crotts said. “It’s going to be more challenging and it’s going to be tough, but it’s

also going to be rewarding and it’s going to be fun as well.”

Elliot and Crotts both have plans for the school, but they ultimately just want to enhance the school in any way they see fit.

“I want PHS to be the best possible place a student would want to be for education, activities, and preparation for life outside of school,” Elliot said. “I also want it to be a place where teachers are excited to be a part of and a place that the community can be proud of everyday.”

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Feature

December 2023

Making it official Three seniors commit to college

Photo by | Sidney Lira

Photo by | Sidney Lira

Adding a modern touch Renovations to the middle school provides new learning spaces Words by | Heather Mowdy ecently, Pittsburg Community Middle School had a few updates made to the front part of the building.

Renovations started in July of 2022 and finished in July of 2023, taking only one year which was the originally projected time frame.

“We took [the proposal] out to the public,” Richard Proffitt, Pittsburg school district’s superintendent, said. “It was very important that we didn’t raise taxes to do this. It was a huge deal.”

Bond issues had called to tear down the part of the building prior to its renovation due to questions as to whether the building was safe or not. “[Tearing the building down] didn’t resonate with the community very well,” Proffitt said. “A lot of people wanted to keep this building.”

After a structural engineer came and decided that the all concrete building would be sound enough to renovate, an architect then came in to create ideas for the new space. “[The architect] worked with our staff and some of our faculty and administration to listen to what the needs actually were,” Proffitt said. “Not only present needs but also future needs and renovate [the space] in such a way that we could take on additional growth and use it currently in a functional way.”

Many students and teachers have had the opportunity to use this space. Baylee Claypool, multimedia communications teacher at the middle school, has been one of the many to see the area change from the old building to the new renovated space.

“My favorite renovated space will have to be the auditorium,” Claypool

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said. “I cannot wait to watch our first play here.”

The new space is going to be used for a couple things: overflow classrooms and collaborative spaces.

“The kids have benefited a lot from this renovation to the building,” Claypool said. “They have new learning spaces to learn in, a new area for our wrestling team to practice and host meets, the auditorium to practice for student plays, and more.”

In anticipation for growing numbers, pillars have been added in a way that walls can be put up to create additional classrooms.

“The renovated space has already had an impact on the school,” Claypool said. “We have all these new areas of the school we can utilize and students can learn.”

A new, modern look was added to the building through the reconstruction and the carefully chosen decor.

“The new spaces for students to collaborate with one another are clean, spacious, comfy, and perfect for learning,” Claypool said.

Construction has been ongoing in the school district since 2017 as the school board passes new bond projects to better Pittsburg Community schools.

“I’d like to take a breather from construction,” Proffitt said. “We are going to have to focus on some facilities because we do have a growing student population and it doesn’t really look like it’s going to slow down any time soon.”

One facility that many people are concerned about is the high school.

“We are at what I would call functional capacity at the high school right now,” Proffitt said.

In the six years that Proffitt has

Back to her roots: Words by | Chloe Nickelson Former Pittsburg High School student Madisyn Robison is the new public information officer and social media manager for the USD 250 school district.

“I had my first experience with social media management when I was a student at PHS,” Robison said. “I was a writer and photographer for The Booster Redux all four years of my high school career and my sophomore year we, as a staff, decided we wanted to have an online presence. So, myself and another student took on the task of rebuilding The Booster’s website and social media platforms. I was then able to manage those platforms until I graduated.”

Robison was hired in May of 2023. According to Robison, the job has been great because of the people she works with.

“One of my favorite things about my job is that I don’t really have a typical day, everyday is different,” Robison said.

“I usually try to divide my day and spend a little bit of time monitoring the district’s social media platforms, and looking over our website to see if there are any improvements or updates that need to be made. The rest of my day could be filled with a lot of different things like taking pictures of activities going on around the district or creating graphics for future social media posts.”

Before getting the job as the public information officer, Robison was a full time student at PIttsburg State University.

After graduating Robison heard about the job opening for the public information officer and saw it as a promising

been a part of the school district, the high school students numbers have increased by more than 200, exceeding 1000 students.

“We’re busting at the seams,” Proffitt said. “So we are certainly going to have to take a look at that. It’s part of the overall plan but it’s more complex than just saying ‘Let’s fix this.’”

In order to accommodate for the increase of students, some classes have moved outside of the school.

“We think that’s an integral part of the educational process,” Proffitt said.

“We may have some more students that are outside of the school which would not necessarily lead to an additional classroom.”

On September 1, the middle school held a ribbon cutting ceremony that was open to select people. During this time, members of the community could visit the school and explore the newly renovated area.

Two students who are a part of the student council at PCMS were chosen to help cut the ribbon at this ceremony.

One of these students was 8th grader Lauryn Keller.

“I was really nervous because a lot of people were watching me,” Keller said.

“This opportunity means a lot to me because I’m a part of a lot of things but I’m usually behind the scenes and I’ve been recognized. It feels pretty good.”

According to Keller, the space will be beneficial for the students in many ways.

“I’ve never seen anything like this in any of the other schools,” Keller said.

“This would be a place we could come to for some quietness or to study. It’s a new spot for us to learn.”

Words by | Heather Mowdy On Nov. 1, senior Mya Russell signed her letter of intent to continue her academic and athletic career at Fort Scott Community College, where she plans to play softball.

“The family environment coach Kae and coach Taylor created has made a huge impact on the program,” Russell said. “They prioritize their relationship with their athletes. That is a big reason I chose to sign here.”

Words by | Heather Mowdy On Nov. 1, senior Maddie Burdick signed her letter of intent to continue her academic and athletic career at Daytona State College, where she plans to play softball.

“I chose Daytona State because of the coaching staff,” Burdick said. “Head coach Greer had great energy and I loved his coaching style. I think he will really help me build on the skills I have.”

Before choosing this school, Burdick visited the campus and explored the softball program.

“When I met the coaching staff and the girls, it was very clear that they have a great program and have created a family atmosphere,” Burdick said. “I’ll need that since I’ll be 12,000 miles from home.”

Burdick has been playing softball most of her life and it has led to this opportunity.

“My travel team really focused on getting us in front of college coaches by attending college showcases,” Burdick said.

At these showcases, college coaches can come and see the upcoming talent and have a chance to visit with the players.

Former student acquires job in school district

opportunity.

“So far, my favorite thing about being the public information officer is getting to go to the different schools and take pictures of all the fun activities going on around the district,” Robison said. “Then I get to share how awesome our students and staff are with the community.”

Photo by | Sidney Lira Words by | Heather Mowdy On Nov. 8, senior Marielle Wright signed her letter of intent to continue her academic and athletic career at Bemidji State University, where she plans to play soccer.

“I chose to sign with Bemigji because it really had all of what I was looking for,” Wright said.

“It is a top Division-II soccer program.”

Wright has been playing soccer for a long time, going to

Photo provided by | Madisyn Robison

After looking at several programs, FSCC stood out the most and was ultimately chosen for Russell’s future school.

“This school stood out because of their amazing facilities,” Russell said. “And the fact that their program is growing so quickly.”

Russell started playing t-ball when she was four. She then played in the town’s recreational softball league until the age of seven when she then made the switch to travel ball.

“Playing for Pepper’s Lazor has helped me gain confidence and helped me to find my identity on and off the field,’’ Russell said.

Moving on can often be scary for many, but according to Russell, there are also many things to look forward to.

“I am mostly looking forward to playing with new people,” Russell said. “I am excited to make new friends and bond with my teammates and coaches.”

Photo by | Sidney Lira “At one of the showcases, I was introduced to coach Greer and he kept up with how I was playing by videos I uploaded on sports recruit,” Burdick said.

“I then went on to tour the college and received my offer after lots of communication.”

According to Burdick, there are many things to be excited about with moving to the next level.

“I’m looking forward to everything but most of all meeting my teammates and creating new friendships while being able to continue playing softball,” Burdick said.

Kansas City, Kan. 3 to 5 times a week.

“I went to several identification camps,” Wright said. “I talked to a bunch of coaches to find the best fit for me.”

After talking to coaches and exploring other programs, Wright eventually chose Bemidji State for a couple reasons.

“Bemidji stood out to me the most because I loved the connection I had with the team and the coach,” Wright said. “The coach is a man of faith which is also something that is important to me. He seems to help his players grow as people, not just as soccer players.”

While it is a big change, Wright is ready to start playing at the next level.

“The coaches and the team are great,” Wright said. “The location is beautiful. I look forward to getting up there to start competing and getting better.

OPINION Booster Redux Staff & Policy

December 2023 De

3

Basic-haters

Heather Mowdy

Online Editors Addi Foster Chloe Nickelson

Social Media Manager Sidney Lira

Staff Hailey Gray John Lee Camden Huffman Grace Rogers Audrey Hertrich Trystin Owen

Adviser Nicole Foster

Words by | Heather Mowdy s a 16-year-old girl who thoroughly enjoys pumpkin spice lattes, wears overly branded clothes and listens to Taylor Swift daily, I am often called a “basic white girl.” I don’t think that this is or should be an insult.

One of my biggest pet peeves is when people make others feel bad for liking something or being excited about something. It should not be your job to tell someone what they can or cannot like. People should feel free to enjoy things without the thought that they are doing something wrong or getting judged for liking something. This is one of the reasons that I find the term “basic white girl” so annoying.

New things are trending all the time. In order for an item to be trending, a lot of people would have to like it. However, most of these trending items are considered basic since so many people like them.

If enough people like something to call it basic, then there is probably a reason it is so “basic.”

One thing I often get called a “basic white girl” for is liking Taylor Swift. While this is often in fun, it can also get taken farther than just a simple phrase. This can often make me feel belittled and upset. I sometimes feel like there is something wrong with me for liking Taylor Swift’s music when people treat me the way they do when I say one little thing about her.

That goes back to the idea that we should not be putting people down for their likes and interests. If you don’t agree

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with someone’s opinion, don’t say anything about it.

It’s that simple.

I am self-aware enough to realize that I like a lot of things that are deemed basic. Yes, I enjoy pumpkin spice everything. I wear Lululemon. I watch Friends and reality TV shows. Along with this, I am also socially aware enough to realize that not everyone is going to like the same things that I do.

This doesn’t mean that I am going to shove these things down your throat or make you like them or get mad at you for not liking them. I might talk about them excessively, update you on the latest news surrounding that particular topic/item, or have that item with me at all times.

Yes, I am a basic white girl. But I am not ashamed. You shouldn’t be either. Embrace your basicness. Wear that Lululemon with pride.

Scream those Taylor Swift lyrics at the top of your lungs. Drink a pumpkin spice latte every day. Enjoy it. You deserve to love the little things in life.

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Editor-in-Chief

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Mowdy expresses thoughts on having popular interests

Production shut down hic ap Gr

Nickelson reflects on recent strike

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The Booster Redux Pittsburg High School Student Publications 1978 E. 4th St. Pittsburg, KS 66762

Words by | Chloe Nickelson Picture this, you sit down with snacks in hand, ready to watch your favorite show. You binge for hours upon hours getting hooked into the plot, finding parts of yourself in the characters on the screen. At the end of the last episode, you see that the show has been approved for another season, you get so excited and start to do some research to find out when your favorite show is going to air only to see that the writing and producing of the

show has been set back for months, or even years.

This has been the case for many people’s favorite movies and television shows including the HBO Max hit “Euphoria”, Netflix’s “Stranger Things”, and Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale.” This is all the cause of the current writers strike that is going on within Hollywood today. The strike is due to the underpayment of actors and writers.

How does this affect us within our daily lives?

Many people, including myself, turn to movies and television shows as a form of entertainment that is used constantly. This entertainment can be through streaming subscriptions such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Max, Disney Plus, YouTube T.V., and others. This can also be through cable television that is provided on many platforms. As someone who watches their fair share of television shows, the delay of some of my favorite shows has

been upsetting.

Specifically, after finishing season four of Netflix’s Stranger Thing, I was really looking forward to the end of the story after the announcement that season five would be the final season of the show. With the writers’ strike going on, even though I watched season four in July of 2022, the final season will not air until I graduate high school in late 2025. Many shows will continue to get postponed and many of the most anticipated movies will be released later due to the strike.

In my opinion, I believe that fair pay is essential for the strike to end. Until changes are made there will most likely be more delays to our favorite shows, series, and movies across all streaming services and platforms. Overall, this could affect television and the film industry in itself for many months or even years.

The “Miraculous” comfort in media Lee shares opinion on varying entertainment preferences Words by | John Lee One thing that I’ve determined over the past few first days of school is that there is a dire need to discuss media and entertainment preferences schoolwide.

I’ve noticed walking through the halls and glancing at people’s phones or computers that everyone’s preference for entertainment is wildly different.

One second I’ll be looking at a group of kids my age dancing on TikTok, and the next I’ll see a timelapse of someone mowing their lawn.

And with 700 million TikTok users being averaged this year, it’s only natural that there would be tons of variety when it comes to the videos being shown.

However, this phenomenon isn’t exclusive to TikTok. In fact, it can be seen in just about any sort of media. Most notably, Netflix.

Upon further inspection, Netflix doesn’t only comprise of the 20 common genres such as action, comedy, fantasy, etc., but also 76,897 unique subgenres and secret genres.

This opens up the gate to extreme niche viewership for every single Netflix member. Whether that’s someone who’s been searching for a hidden genre they haven’t viewed yet, or a 16-year-old junior in high school who still watches “Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir” who will remain anonymous.

With nearly 77,000 different genres, it’s guaranteed that someone in my school is watching something on the site that’s likely pretty embarrassing. This is an absolute saving grace for most people.

Being someone who has a newfound obsession with “Miraculous: Tales of

Ladybug and Cat Noir”, a show that’s blatantly made for children, I feel much more comfortable watching my favorite show during study hall or my downtime in class.

The idea of inclusivity in viewership not only makes a corporation more welcoming and seemingly open to the public but also creates a sense of comfort for just about everyone.

The moral of the story is that I can now comfortably watch the best show in history without the fear of being harped on for it because of the mutual respect that media inclusivity creates.

And so, I will be pridefully embracing my appreciation of “Miraculous”. If you see me in class watching it, don’t worry too much; I’m having a great time.

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4

SPORTS

December 2023

Swing for the title Girls golf competes at state Words by | Addi Foster fter placing fourth at regionals, the girls golf team got the opportunity to compete at the 5A state tournament.

To even qualify for state, the team had to qualify for regionals. At regionals, only four teams are selected to compete at the state level. The rest are individually picked based on scores. Since the team placed 4th, they advanced to state.

This is the third time head coach Mary Packard has gotten to take her whole team to state ever since she started coaching in 2015.

“We shot a pretty good team score for us,” Packard said. “We shot a four man score of 378. Our low for the year was 368. We were 20 strokes from being the number six team and playing on day two.”

Throughout the entirety of the season, the team practiced Monday through Friday after school. After a couple of tournaments, the varsity players practiced Sunday evenings for a little over an hour. In order to prepare for the state tournament specifically, the team played two practice rounds in order to become familiar with the course.

“We worked specifically on chipping, putting and our approach shots,” Packard said. “I feel that our focus on Sundays before

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our Monday tournaments really helped.”

Junior golf team member Alyssa Cosens believes that competing at state was a really good experience considering this was the first time the whole team competed at state in several years.

“I improved by several strokes from last year,” Cosens said. “It’s fun to play with the best players in the state, and see what I am working towards.”

Senior golf team member Faith Leonard enjoyed competing at state because it gave her the opportunity to see how much improvement she’s made.

“It was very fun to play with girls that we have never met or played with,” Leonard said.

“I also enjoyed getting to hang out with all of my teammates and coaches for four days to make memories.”

This year, the team’s dynamic really affected the outcome of the season.

“This group of girls, including four seniors, all came out for golf last year, each with little to no golf experience,” Packard said. “They worked so hard to get better and saw how it helped the team as we placed in every tournament this season with five tournament wins.”

In the end, the girls golf team placed 9th out of 12 teams in the 5A state tournament.

Senior Faith Leonard competes at state. Photo provided by | Mary Packard

Pre-season preparation Volleyball host jamboree for the first time Words by | Addi Foster “I thought the jamboree was exciting for The Pittsburg High School volleyball our players, coaching staff and community,” team had their first opportunity to play in Riggs said. “It was a good way for the girls to a jamboree on Aug. 24. This was the first showcase their skills while also showing us season any school could host a jamboree. which areas we still need to improve on.”

In the past, the volleyball team participated Now that the volleyball team has gotten in the Purple and White Scrimmage where to experience a jamboree, there are distinct the teams just played against each other. similarities and differences between This year, the jamborees and regular jamboree season games. featured “They are similar in Frontenac, the sense that we get “I thought the jamboree was exciting for our Colgan, and to have the opportunity players, coaching staff, and community. It was Fort Scott and to go compete against a good way for the girls to showcase their skills each school another team, but they while also showing us which areas we still need to played two sets don’t count toward improve on.” against each anyone’s record,” Riggs Ashlen Riggs team. The first said. “Jamborees are a Head Volleyball Coach to get 15 points chance for the girls to won the set. get some of their “first Ashlen Riggs, game jitters” out of the head volleyball coach, thoroughly prepared way and play in front of spectators in a formal her team for the jamboree. setting so that when they go into their first real “The preparation for this season (and competition they are ready to perform.” the jamboree) started back on May 31st According to Riggs, the jamboree set the when the girls began attending strength & tone for the season. It showed what the conditioning, open gyms, summer league team had to work on, such as making less games, etc,” Riggs said. “We treated the unforced mistakes. Also, it gave everyone an jamboree like any other competition and just opportunity to demonstrate their individual worked on controlling our side of the court, strengths. being disciplined and being fundamentally “It gets the girls excited and fired up sound.” about the opportunity to compete, which Riggs believes the jamboree was a great is ultimately why they play,” Riggs said. event because of Jeff Staley and Aaron Burns, “The more this group of girls can be on a who were in charge of communicating with court together and just play volleyball, the teams and officials, players who competed better they’re going to be. They have a lot of from all teams, and the community who came potential and I think every time they step on to show support. the floor they are able to build on that.”

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Hailey Gray, Erin O’Connell, Heather Mowdy, Rileigh Manuel, and Ivery Watts celebrate after earning a point during jamboree game versus Fort Scott. Photo by | Grace Rogers

Photo by | Camden Huffman

Creating forever bonds Football players reflect on their season Words by | Camden Huffman After a tough loss to Lancing in the first round of postseason play, Pittsburg’s football season comes to an end.

Treeman Wesley was a junior starter for the dragons this season. Some of his and his team’s goals this season were to win and work effectively as a team.

“Our main objective was to win and sometimes not to create a brotherhood,” Wesley said. “Football is about brotherhood, especially when we are in high school. You have to have that bond to win. Sometimes I felt like we came up short in certain games because we didn’t have that brotherhood.”

According to Wesley, the football team made big improvements this year compared to last. Some of these include the team’s collaboration, something that sophomore Jace Akins observed throughout the season.

“We had a lot of improvements with team chemistry,” Akins said. “Ability was improved, more people improved on what they had to work on from last year, and we were a lot better as a whole team.”

Football is a way for different grades to interact and create friendships.

“Everyone was nice and I got to experience some things with the freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who are all nice people,” senior Christopher Morgan said. “As a team, we bonded a lot, got to know each other more, and the coaches helped us get to where we are today.”

Unfortunately for this season, many players obtained injuries that forced them to sit out of games. One of those players was senior Grant O’Doherty, who tore his ACL and lateral

meniscus. During week four’s game against Fort Scott.

“I jumped up for an interception, caught it, landed, tried to plant and run, and I just felt a pop,”O’Doherty said. “I tried to run and I couldn’t. I fell on the ground and couldn’t move.”

Despite his mishap, O’Doherty has been able to stay positive with the support of his teammates.

“My team was there the whole way. I mean, it was probably two days after surgery, and I had my friends come over to my house, and we were just talking about the next week’s game. I mean, they were there the whole way,” O’Doherty said. “I feel like I’m a leader on this team, and I want them to get as far as possible, and I’m going to be right there with them.”

Webb Fern was the quarterback for the team this season and was a role model and leader.

“I love my teammates, they were all really great and I really liked the O-line,” Fern said.

“They were my favorite. They’re always there, and if you do something wrong, there’s always someone there to give you a high-five or to pick you up.”

This year, Fern was among the many players that acquired injuries. Although he could not play at the season’s end, it taught him an invaluable lesson.

“Enjoy things while they last because you never know whenever it’s your last time doing something,” Fern said. “I didn’t know that that was my last game. It just kind of teaches you to enjoy stuff while it lasts.”