THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Skiatook High School Athletics

Skiatook’s 6th grade football tem won the State Championship! Coached by Danny Foster and Jason Willingham the 6th grade team conquered three undefeated teams to become State Champions. “We started the season a little rough,” said Assistant Coach Jason Willingham. The team began the season with losses to Stillwater and Union. Then the team settled into division games and started to find its rhythm. Something changed during a game with TYA red. The team lost, but halfway through Willingham said they really turned it on. “They began to feel like they could play anyone.” The team was the second seed heading into the State Championship. After defeating TYA Blue, Willingham said they team really felt like they could win the championship. Then they defeated Haskell and faced a rematch against TYA Red in the championship game. “We watched film and felt like we had a chance. In that first game we really defeated ourselves. We played scared and timid the first half, but came back the second half. We wanted to win this time,” Willingham said. The Bulldogs faced TYA Red in Bixby. Willingham said the boys responded well and played well. They overcame the previous loss and defeated TYA Red 22-19 to clinch the championship. “We really came together as a team. They never got down on one another. They just kept encouraging each other,” said Willingham. “We relished our underdog status all season and can’t wait to go into school ball next year. We want to bring the gold ball back to Skiatook.” Maybe even more important than a championship win, was what the boys learned off the scoreboard. “We always think 6th grade ball doesn’t matter, but businesses had signs up supporting us and celebrating the win,” Willingham said. The support from the community meant a lot to the team. “It was so great to turn around and see a couple hundred people in the stands,” Willingham said. “I think it taught the boys a lot about home pride and what it’s like to come from a small town that takes care of what is theirs.” The coaches have spent many seasons teaching the boys about football. This team has been together for the past three years, and some have been together since first grade. But they also tried to teach them about being good young men. “It doesn’t matter how good you are at football if you aren’t a good person and if you don’t take care of your responsibilities,” Willingham said. As a community, we look forward to what’s next for this championship team.

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Skiatook High School Athletics

6TH GRADE WINS STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

LINDSEY RENUARD

Skiatook Journal | 11/18/2016

PHOTO CREDIT: Skiatook Journal