Just a few weeks ago, on August 28, 2025, Spectrum’s varsity football team celebrated their first win in three years. After being down in the game, Joseph Hansen said, “We had a really good drive in the fourth quarter. Which was the final touchdown that we needed.” Spectrum Sting won the game, and the teammates grew together as a football family.
They didn’t just win by luck; the team has been putting in the work all summer long. They’ve not only been working on strength and conditioning, but the team’s been focusing on their technique and strategies in their games. They started doing “two-a-day” practices, which were very grueling for the team but have paid off. As Coach Stockwell said, “We wanted to adopt a new mindset. We did two-a-days for the first time in program history actually…We had to do a lot of fundamentals this summer. Really set them up for success in the football season.” While these changes in practices really did set the team up for their big win, their work wasn’t the only thing leading to their success.
Another factor was the team’s mentality. Elijah Chickering said, “Just the way when we made that touchdown like the energy was just sucked out of [the opposing team] and every time we made something we got built up.” The comradery of the team and coaches has made a big impact. Coach Stockwell said, “The biggest difference is both maturity and… a willingness to hit. It shows in practice, it shows in games. And we’re going to keep showing it for the rest of the season as well.” The adrenaline and excitement of winning made the team want to continue putting in the work and keeping the energy up. Most returning players hadn’t experienced a win in their football career, making this event even more meaningful.
After winning this close game the experience felt surreal. The emotion of finally winning a game overcame the team as they celebrated together. Coach Stockwell said, “It was such a blessing and such an honor to be able to watch these guys celebrate a win….We had coach Gangle in tears at the end of the game. We had a bunch of guys getting ready to cry. They hadn’t gotten to experience that joy before.”
This big win was exciting as it was the first win that our 2026 senior varsity players had ever experienced. Jarren Mitchell, an underclassman varsity football player, said, “When the energy came up and we finally won, I was just really happy for the seniors who have been working hard for this since middle school.” This experience has brought the team energy, joy, and determination for their future games.