By Brant Daughtry
Great Bend Post Sports
The St. John-Hudson Tigers are making a jump up from 8-man Division 2 to Division 1. When the team does start the year, they’ll be the smallest school in the first division, and they’ll do so having graduated several senior leaders from last year’s team.
However, new head coach Reuben Martin knows that this year’s senior class has watched and learned behind that group, and now wants to show off what they can do.
"I'll never put these guys down. Because I think we're gonna surprise some people. Because we had a big class graduate, and that takes a lot. When you have that much leadership out, it changes how a football team feels. But when you have kids that have been battle tested through having to back those guys up in a game, and try to play to their level?
"They're going to come out wanting it. They've got a little bit of a chip on their shoulder. 'I wanna show everybody how good I am.' And there's other teams that say 'Well they've lost a lot.' And yeah we've lost a lot. But there's always been more there. We've just never had to showcase it."
Martin also says building confidence as a team early will go a long way in determining the season the Tigers have.
"It's gonna be interesting to see where we're at. Like I tell the boys, as long as we come out, we do what we're supposed to, we have a good, conducive five games, you know we could walk in there (Kiowa County) possibly 4-1, 5-0. That changes your mentality as a player when you walk in and you have that confidence. And you don't feel like it's so far away. Once you get a little bit of that swagger, and that confidence... that distance, it closes a little bit. That gap gets a little smaller. I think that there's gonna be some surprise for people this year."
The Tigers open with Ness City at home on September 4th.