Varsity football: Cowboys couldn’t tackle the competition during their senior night

BY KYLEIGH SPRIGLE

On Friday, September 20, the CCHS football team played a home game against Western. 

One night per year is dedicated to all of the seniors from the football team, along with the band, cheer and color guard seniors. The Cowboys lost their senior night game 0-56.

At the start of the game, both teams came out strong defensively and offensively. Western started with the ball and the Cowboys put up a good fight on defense. Then Western made a long pass for a touchdown and got the 2-point conversion. Western was up 0-8. 

The Cowboys fumbled multiple times during the first quarter. Western took advantage and scored twice more. The Cowboys came close to getting a touchdown but couldn’t make it. The score by the end of the first quarter was 0-28, with Western in the lead. 

“I feel that the biggest mistake we made was taking practice the week leading up to the game lightly.”

In the second quarter, Western came out of the gates strong. With only a few downs they scored another touchdown and a field goal, making the score 0-35. The Cowboys could not score against the opposing team’s defense, so they punted the ball. Western scored again, but due to a flag on the play, it did not count. 

Cooper City held off the Wildcats with their strong defense. However, when it was the Cowboys’ time to score, they were unable to do so. Western scored again after the ball was punted and made the field goal. The score was 0-42 by the time Western gained possession of the ball again. They continued to push towards the end zone. They made the touchdown, but yet again there was a flag on the play. The Wildcats made an incomplete pass and missed their second attempt at a touchdown. 

The Cowboys were losing 0-42 by the start of the second half. The Wildcats lost some steam and the Cowboys put pressure on them. The Wildcats were only able to score twice in the final two quarters. The Cowboys made many efforts to get to the end zone but were unsuccessful. The final score of the game was in favor of Western 56-0.

“I feel that the biggest mistake we made was taking practice the week leading up to the game lightly,” quarterback Cody Hallman said. “It’s not so much on the coaches, but the attitude that us guys need to have to roll into the game.”

“We learned to not give up and we need to just be humble and try our best.”

For many, the night was not ruined by the score of the game. During halftime, the seniors were able to walk across the field with their families. Their names and pictures flashed across the screen as they walked down the field.

“The score didn’t affect my senior night at all,” color guard senior Emily Collins said. “It was a lot of fun. We got to dance and walk with the people we love. Lots of laughs and memories [were] made.”

The team has a little less than a month to prepare for their next home game. The final game of the season is the homecoming game, which will be played on October 17. The team has not won the homecoming game in the past 3 years, but some stay hopeful.

“We learned to not give up and we need to just be humble and try our best,” senior Michael Javier said. “I think we are going to win the homecoming game.”

Photo by Genna Nordling