Story by Zach Waters, Evan Thomas and Alex Ueber

The players walk out in rows of two, they’re hand-in-hand showing leadership and unity to the other team. This excites the fans and then they are ready for the game to begin.
This is the first glimpse the spectators see before the football game starts.

“This is a sign of unity and playing together,” Mr. Josh Cole, eighth grade head football coach, said.

But what the spectators don’t see are the players during practice.

Cole said the players warm up, and then after that they separate into offense/defense time. Later during practice, they do a group time where the team gets together and they scrimmage and condition.

With 36 players on the eighth grade team and 30 players on the seventh grade team, Clay will notice students wearing nice shirts and ties on days of games. Then on days when they compete against Creekside and Carmel, the hallways are speckled with red and white jerseys. The players are extra hyped and ready to play on those days.

Just like the eighth graders, the seventh grade team approaches the field in a row of two. Bryce Cannon, seventh grade, is a part of the football team, and he has been playing football since kindergarten.

He plays inside linebacker and fullback. The players love to play the game and hope they can continue playing as they go into the eighth grade team or the high school team.
 
“After every game, the seventh graders do squares,” Coach Derek Dial said. “It's a physical drill that helps bring them together as a team.”

After any game, the players, no matter the score, are ready to take on the next team.