For the first time in nearly two years, on August 31, the IHS Boys Varsity Football team won a game. The 51-8 rout came on the road against Oswego in the team’s first game of the season which is the first game under its new head coach. While the win signalled the end of an ugly chapter in IHS Football history, it also felt like the beginning of an era of increased competitiveness and hope for the Lil’ Red.
“I was absolutely stoked,” said team captain Louis Webster ‘19 about the win. “We were grinding in the weight room all offseason, and I felt like we deserved and earned it.” The win was the first since a 21-14 road victory on October 7, 2016, after which the team’s promising 2016 campaign was derailed by three straight losses to end the season. The straits were even more dire in the 2017 season, with the Lil’ Red losing all ten of their regular season games and failing to make the playoffs.
In the win, Ithaca managed to more than double Oswego’s total yards, and three players, Angel Rivera-Barrett ‘19, Simon Barley ‘20, and Spencer Whitmore ‘21, managed to run for over 100 yards. The Ithaca defense also managed to keep Oswego scoreless for the first three quarters, with Oswego only managing to score near the end of the game. In that fourth quarter, however, Ithaca scored an incredible 56-yard touchdown, a highlight of the game.
At the end of the 2017 season, it was clear that the Lil’ Red needed a change to enter the 2018 season on a positive note. The team parted ways with head coach Kelly Gordon, hiring Clarence Welch III, a former IHS football star, to turn the program around. The Lil’ Red’s goal going into the offseason was not only to earn wins in the 2018 season, but to turn around the culture surrounding the team. “This season, I don’t think we have much more talent or size than before,” said Webster about the differences between the 2017 and 2018 teams. “We just have a lot more drive, and a lot more focus. We’re really motivated, and we’ve managed to come together to play as a team.”
Although the team lost its next game against rival Vestal, looking forward, the Lil’ Red hopes to build upon the early success and win more games. “Going forward, I think many of the teams that we play are beatable.” said Webster. “We may be outsized and outmatched, but I think that we can pull out some more wins. But more importantly, our goal is to get this program to a point where it can be even more successful next year.”
Looking towards the future, the IHS Boys Football team will still be an underdog in most of their matchups. However, having finally broken their streak of bad luck and disproving naysayers along the way, they look forward with optimism and determination. “I’m hoping that we can make a run at a postseason appearance,” says Webster. “It would mean a lot to us, and it would be huge for the program.”