After a tough loss to Agoura during the Kanan Bowl, football is coming back and has won the last two games. They recently beat Birmingham High School 31-6; before that, they won against Saugus High School 32-24
“For our game against Agoura, I think we just had too many mistakes on both sides of the ball,” senior Tyler Fuchs said. “It ended up hurting us, but I know we are a better team than them so it was just our mistakes.”
However, since that loss, the boys have been training hard.
“We came together as a team after the Agoura game and went over every single thing that we thought we could be better on,” senior captain Ethan Abgergel said. “We watch a lot of film and in practice, we make sure we practice hard with a lot of energy and focus so we can bring out the best team we can possibly be on Friday nights.”
Captains help a lot with teamwork and strategies, especially during practice. They are crucial to the team’s functionality.
“As captain, I try to keep the energy high, always pushing everyone to give 100% effort,” senior captain Zach Abergel said. “I feel like our defense has bonded together. We have a really good run-stopping defense and communication has helped us a lot. We just gotta be able to cover the deep ball better. Once we figure that out, who knows what we can accomplish.”
The big Birmingham win had a lot of amazing plays which were a result of all the work the players put in outside of the games.
“I had an interception in the fourth quarter,” senior Tyler Kang said. “It was awesome. I felt a rush of adrenaline. I’ve been working hard in practice catching a lot of footballs and working on my footwork. Everyone in the team is getting better as the season goes on.”
With a score of 31-6, the game was high scoring. However, the most key points that set the tone for the game happen early.
“I scored the first touchdown and rushed for over 70 yards, and created opportunities for passing,” senior Oliver Gonzalez said. “I received for over 60 yards as well. The touchdown felt nice, especially after our loss to them last year. I have been working really hard in practice. Working with my O line has helped a ton with pass protection especially.”
The team continues to make progress in practice and prepare themselves to be the best version of themselves.
“We cleaned up the little mistakes after Agoura,” senior captain Issac Thomas said. “We cleaned up the penalties and the turnovers and we can see now the potential we had in week one. We are practicing hard and are going to continue to improve as the season goes on.”
OPHS students, parents and faculty can come to support the boy at the next home game against Grace Brethren on Homecoming Night on Sept. 20.
