Though the season has come to an end, the football team reflects on their winning season.
Before playoff week, the team was in a good position. “We finished the regular season with eight wins and two losses…third in our region,” said Head Coach Franklin Pridgen. Both of the losses were by a combined seven points from Eagles’ Landing Christian and Landmark Christian. “We felt like we were really close and could’ve won each of those games,” said Pridgen. Wesleyan had a bye week in their final game of the season, so they did not play in Round One of the playoffs. However, Wesleyan played the winner of the Pinecrest-Brookstone game in Round Two. Instead of using the bye week as a traditional week of rest, the football team decided to train even harder, practicing after school and pushed their own limits.
“[The four senior captains] have done a great job of keeping our focus where it needs to be each week. [Banks Ramsey, three year starting quarterback,] does a really, really good job of orchestrating our offense, and getting the ball in the hands of guys who can do great things with it,” said Coach Pridgen.
The football managers also worked all season to keep the team in tip-top shape.
“We’re all pretty tied together. The coaches can’t function without the managers, and the managers can’t function without the coaches, and the team can’t function without the coaches, and so on…we kind of balance each other out,” said football manager, McKenzie Keeler. “Getting to know the injured players, and helping them out, and on the side-lines you get to see people’s personalities better…We all kind of build stellar relationships, and we all kind of rely on each other, and it forms a bond. I know some sports the players don’t really interact with the managers, but with football it’s totally different,” said Keeler.
Coach Pridgen was also sure to highlight coaching staff. “We’ve got a very, very talented, exceptional coaching staff that works really hard, and I’m blessed to have great men to work with…It’s just a blessing to me to have guys like that to work with…I think there’s a real positive energy in our program right now,” said Pridgen.“[Coach Pridgen is] a really good coach. He makes his ideas and emotions on how his team will [perform] known [to them], but also makes the team believe in themselves,” said Keeler.
Though the Wolves did not proceed to the next round, they certainly fought hard and had a successful season.
