With the football team coming off a big 44-6 win against a conference foe and it being homecoming week, a lot of people are very excited for the upcoming game this Friday against rival Northwestern. Northwestern, who is 3-0, will be very confident coming into the game as usual, but the Kings won’t be lacking any confidence as they feel like the pieces are coming together after thrashing Hamilton Heights last Friday night. The crowd is expected to be very large for the game as the community is very excited for the game, and who doesn’t love to see a battle between the Kings and the Tigers?

After losing their head coach over the off-season Northwestern, Alex Stewart, to cross-town rival Western Panthers, many expected the team to take a step back, but that hasn’t been the case at all as the Tigers are 3-0. The Tigers, who are coming off a 40-20 victory against a weak Benton Central team, lost a lot of people from last year’s solid team but return a couple of key contributors as well. They return first team all-state running back Evan Cardwell and many two way starters including Evan Shaw, Nick Suttong, and Justin Ballenger.

While many were low on the Kings at the beginning of the season, last week’s shellacking of Hamilton Heights changed many opinions. “Last week got me very excited for the upcoming season, and I can’t wait for the game on Friday,” said paint crew leader Josh Hanlon. “I’ve been looking forward to this game all season, and I can’t wait to cheer the team on. I’m expecting the boys to play great, and the student section will be rocking. I can’t wait for the game!”

Along with the game preparation, many students are very excited for the homecoming festivities as well. Friday during school the students will be having a pep rally during last period to get everyone even more excited and end the week on a good night. During the pep rally, students from all grades will participate in activities such as sack races, egg tosses, and tug of war. Usually the teachers get a tug of war team together to spicen up the activity a little more.

What people might most be excited for is the king and queen crowning at the game. The boy’s crowning will occur before the game, and the court includes Brady Johnson, Josh Hanlon, Brady Hammond, Jason Knight, Noah Miller, and Mason Young. The queen crowning will take place at halftime, and the court includes Marisol Karmel, Olivia Salyers, Mallory Minnick, Abrah Humerickhouse, Maddie Hoff, and Quirin Gilbert. Sounds like Owen’s Memorial Field will be the place to be Friday night!

With all of these festivities happening, the students will have a great time! The team will be ready to go, and the crowd will be ready to cheer on the Kings. What a great combination! Hopefully everyone can come out and support the Kings and have some fun with the festivities this Friday night!