CCHS students cheer on their Cowboys at the first home game of the season. Students are becoming more enthusiastic about football thanks to the team’s new winning attitude. Photo Credit SARAH ROUSSELL
BY KAYLA LOKEINSKY
It’s Friday night, and the lights of the football field illuminate the faces of hundreds of screaming fans. From their red, black, and white body paint to their homemade t-shirts, students, along with all members of the community, have decked themselves out for the Cowboy’s first home game. Reaching from one end of the bleachers to the other, the Cowboy spirit electrifies the crowd as the Cooper City High School varsity football team once again scores a touchdown, sending them ahead by another six points. Equipped with a new coach, the CCHS varsity football team is new and improved; they finally have a chance to take their game to a whole new level, and no one is more enthusiastic about this than the fans.
Up until now, fewer CCHS students had attended the school football games to support their team. In fact, before this season, the school’s varsity team was the topic of many jokes amongst the student body due to their lack of success in the previous years. However, thanks to a new coaching staff and a whole new game plan, the Cowboy varsity football team’s new winning attitude has inspired the Cooper City community to show their team spirit.
“There’s buzz about the team all around Cooper City,” head football coach Art Taylor said. “Everywhere I go people are talking about it; the kids, the mayor, people at the sports optimist. That’s why Cooper City is someplace special, it’s a community.”
Taylor, along with a new coaching staff, has worked hard to instill the CCHS varsity football team with a will to win. This is mainly attributed to the change in their mental attitude about the team, the season, and most importantly themselves. Taylor has taught the players that they can win and fight for a district championship. Even after the Cowboys won their pre-season opener game 27-21, it still didn’t satisfy their hunger for success.
“The win wasn’t good enough,” senior captain Matthew Levitan said. “We let them come back in the second half, when we should have stuck the dagger in at 21-0.”
However, CCHS students beg to differ. Ever since the varsity football team proved themselves to be a force to be reckoned with by having a record of 4-1, the jokes and teasing have cease to exist. Instead, students are now proud of their Cowboys, and they pack the stands in order to support their team.
“I haven’t really gone to many football games,” junior Matthew Ballas said. “But now I have full faith in them to win.”
The main reason behind the Cowboys newfound success and restored hope in their fans is their new game plan. Between the new NFL type defense and a better attitude, the team is proving themselves as stellar athletes. Their effort has not gone unnoticed, and the fans are now able to see just how much the team has improved since last season.
“The team doesn’t give up,” sophomore Ashley Tapia said. “I see more communication and more teamwork.”
In addition to the fans becoming more abundant at the football games this year, they have also become more spirited than they have been in the past. These football fanatics have proved to be true “Cooper Crazies”; they show up to the games and display their enthusiasm in eccentric ways. They have been known to paint themselves in the school colors from head to toe, dye their hair red, and some boys even shave the players’ numbers into their chest hair.
“We have a lot of spirit for the team,” senior Michelle Magaro said. “We’re more pumped than ever before.”
As they exit the field, an army of overjoyed fans awaits them, their cries of victory echoing through CCHS and their extreme enthusiasm is undeniable. Due to their new attitudes and their new fan base, the CCHS varsity football team is sure to continue their winning streak thanks to the support of their fellow students.
