The Lancaster Varsity Golden Gales finished week six with a 0-3 record in the OCC and 2-4 overall. Recent losses to Teays Valley, Groveport, and Pickerington Central were hard to take, but head coach Bryan Schoonover maintains that if they consistently work on the little things, the big things will take care of themselves.
“You’ve got to be a master at your craft, you’ve got to get really good at what your job is. So if your job is an O-lineman and your job is to block and protect the quarterback and block for the running backs, then you gotta get good at the specific skill,” he said.
“If you’re a running back, you gotta work on not turning the ball over. You gotta get good at pass protection and catching the ball,” said Schoonover.
LHS junior, team captain, and quarterback Brody Burke said that while they have done a lot of things well, they have not played up to their full potential yet.
“We have faced some challenges for sure. We have had some of our best players miss games due to injury and we had to figure out how to overcome that,” he said.
LHS senior Seth Carson said that the team often starts out strong and then falters.
“A challenge we have faced this year is coming out of half and putting points on the board. We start the game well but have breakdowns on both sides of the ball in the second half,” he said.
Despite difficulties, the team has also experienced many successes so far this season.
“Some of the highlights of the season are obviously our wins but also singing the fight song with the student section after a win” says Burke.
“The highlights of our season have been pretty much being able to pass the ball a lot more and make plays,” said LHS junior Isaiah Sweatte.
Jahmeir Gordon talks about his personal highlights of the season.
“My highlights are Marysville with ten tackles and two forced fumbles and Wayne Valley with three carriers for 70 yards and a touchdown. As well as Teays Valley with 187 rushing yards and one touchdown”
Carson said that significant games stand out for him.
“Some of the highlights of the season so far would be the big wins over Akron North and Marysville,” he said.
With only four games remaining, Coach Schoonover said the Gales are most likely out of the running for the OCC title. But earlier in the season, some players said winning the championship was a major part of their overall goals for the season.
“My personal goal for the whole team would be making it to OCC’s and winning to play more games this fall,” said Sweatte.
“My personal goals for the team would be winning our conference and advancing past the first round of playoffs,” said Carson.
“Personal goals for the team is to win an OCC championship and go deep into the playoffs,” said Sweatte.
Coach Schoonover said that, while everyone wants to win, the real success lies in the team maximizing their potential by working well together.
“How good of a football team can we be when it’s all said and done? Did you do what you wanted to do? Did you exceed the expectations because you just wanted more? Everybody is committed to what we’re trying to do and I think that they want to get better and everybody wants to achieve. It’s exciting to see what we’re going to end up and how we’re going to do,” he said.
