<![CDATA[The Pitch]]> <![CDATA[The Pitch]]> en-us Copyright 2008 - All Rights Reserved. Tue, 21 May 2013 20:18:27 GMT 15 <![CDATA[Searching for Gridiron Glory]]> By Mike Abend


WJ football players at one of many three-hour practices.

We all know the embarrassment of having a losing football team. We know about rooting for the losers, watching games fall from within reach, and of looking for that one winning season. Yet not many people take the time to appreciate what exertion is put into a football season, winning or losing. Season after season WJ has struggled and the players watch game after game slip away. Since 1998, there hasn’t been one winning season; there was even a streak broken two years ago of over twenty straight lost games— that’s two seasons worth of failure. One wonders how players can keep pushing themselves when winning seems out of the question. “We don’t like losing, but a loss just means you have to work harder to win next time”, says senior linebacker Michael Hucke. An ordinary football practice can be more grueling than most other sports’ games. A combination of jogging, sprinting, calisthenics, and weight lifting, football players push themselves to the limit of their potential. Watching the practice, my legs grew tired from standing so long, yet these players were still running long after I had taken a break to sit down. Players are constantly moving, whether it be practicing plays, warming up, or sprinting down the field at the end of practice. Other sports are not put under the pressure football deals with everyday, and football players work continuously to quiet their critics. Some athletes on the team don’t get to play much, yet are still at every practice, hustling faster than anyone else. Head coach Andy Carlstrom commends the aforementioned Hucke for his devotion. Although his playing time is limited, Hucke is loved and respected by everyone on the team for his commitment and attitude. He is at every practice, every film session, and every team sponsored activity ready to go. Win or lose, football is always on these kids’ mind. Most people at this school are quick to agree that football is not our strong suit. Yet the student body needs to take the time to understand what goes into a season. Dedication and hard work is a necessity to even come close to starting on the team; there is a lot people don’t see. Football is still practicing when the all-star cross country team is at Busch Gardens for the weekend. Football is still practicing when field hockey is having their annual team sleep-over. And football will continue to practice, day after day, as a team, until their goal is achieved. ]]> Wed, 22 Sep 2004 22:08:00 GMT