Addison H

Every year when the seniors leave it should be normal and expected, however every year there is still an impact on the people they leave behind. The juniors and coaches have to fill the holes they left behind and use the lessons about teamwork, chemistry, and more that the seniors have taught them.
In sports this is a trend that can very easily be seen, junior football player Elijah Cook talks about what the seniors introduced to this year’s team.
“The seniors brought leadership and chemistry to the team that we didn’t have before without them,” said Cook.
Coach Andrew Shaul, who is one of the many varsity coaches for the football team, has also seen how the seniors have led the team through the season with chemistry and more. He also has gained a close-knit relationship with many of the seniors.
“As a varsity football coach, you get the chance to develop relationships with kids for three years. By the time they are seniors, we have a pretty good relationship with each other and work well together. Some kids you get the chance to coach in other sports or have in class, so that builds a stronger relationship as well. It’s rewarding to work with a kid for 3+ years and see them grow on and off the field,” said Shaul.
Another coach, Marc Harrison, has grown close relationships with seniors and they have impacted him in many ways as well.
“I’ve been growing close with the seniors since they were sophomores. They impact me with their different personalities that I have to adjust to in order to coach them,” said Harrison.
While Shaul creates strong relationships with these kids off the field, many juniors also do too. One junior, Eijah Watts, created a relationship off the field with senior Javen Johnson and learned many life lessons from him.
“I would say Javen Johnson, he really taught me how to be more of a leader and that even though I wasn’t playing at the beginning of the season, to be positive and not so negative all the time,” said Watts.
Cook made an important relationship with another senior as well.
“Patrick Martin really showed me how to get through school and also look for colleges to go to,” said Cook.
Although these seniors are the ones teaching the juniors now, they learned to do this from last year’s seniors who influenced them. One senior, Jaden Reddel, talks about what he learned from a senior and how it influenced him to lead this year’s team.
“Zander Dombrowski taught me how to face adversity and even when he had a bad game he still always lead the team. This influenced me to be a better leader to the team and juniors even when I have a bad game or get down on myself,” said Reddel.
Coaches and juniors learn many things from the seniors through the time they spend with them. They learn valuable lessons on and off the field while building close friendships, so while it’s never easy to watch seniors graduate and leave, it can make it a little easier knowing that they impacted others’s lives in the short time spent with them.