A mere twelve seconds into the game, a rowdy and intoxicated Skyline student section was already encouraging a safe drive home for the opposing fans.
A resounding, “drive home safely,” roared out of the Skyline bleachers after Washington State-commit Gino Simone ran a ball back 93 yards for a touchdown to begin the game.
The Skyline Spartans take the sidelines before playing Lake Washington on September 19, 2008.
Photo by: Jordan Faires
The 3-0 Skyline Spartans, backed by who are considered to be the least courteous fans in the state, played the game without a hitch. Over the course of four quarters, the team didn’t allow a point, but did score 55 of their own.
The result was very similar to the 55-6 beating the Ballard Beavers took in the Spartan home opener on September 12. In that game, the Spartans gave up a touchdown after a fluke quarterback draw put the ball within the ten. The score wasn’t against the starters, but against an assortment of second and third stringers.
Against Lake Washington, Skyline’s defense was shored up and didn’t give the ‘Roos a shot. The coaching staff, liking judging off the success of the second-stringers in last week’s game, took the starters out at 41-0 and never looked back.
Like the cliche says, “history repeats itself.”
In both games, the passing attack looked brilliant. Sure-handed Jake Knecht had several great grabs, including a five-yard touchdown pass from Jake Heaps, who was 5/9 with three touchdowns and an interception. The other two six-pointers came from a phenomenal catch by sophomore standout Kasen Williams, and another from the Speedy Simone.
The running game never really got of the ground. Sophomore Kai Jandoc scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter near the goal line, but senior starter Joey Evans raked in a 35-yard run in the third to pad his numbers and give the team a 48-point lead.
The defending 3A state champions and current 4A top seed Spartans were the recipients of six turnovers by the Kangaroo offense, including one to Matt Trueblood who ran it in for a 22-yard touchdown. In addition to that, the team blocked two punts, one by Ryan Somers and another by a group of guys, and they also stopped L-Dub from punting another time.
Defensively, senior cornerback Will Chandler had an interception return in the second quarter that was called back from the two-yard line after a hold, and Kyle Gutzler had one in the first that could be considered the play that put the game out of reach for the ‘Roos.
In the midst of a sobering crowd (one drink per hour), the Spartans laid their shield and sword upon a Lake Washington team expecting to be clobbered. The game was supposed to be better than that of Ballard, but it turned out to be about the same: a Skyline (near-)shutout.
Comments
I think that the chants and drinking in the student section has grown out of control. Skyline has always been viewed as one of the more modestly successful programs in the state, but the cheering and drinking is really starting to smear that image. People don’t realize that how they act has such a large reflection on the school as a whole. It’s embarrassing. Chanting drive home safely against the worst team in KingCo or “we can’t hear you” when they don’t even have a fan section is not only over the top, but it’s stupid. We look as ignorant as we look cocky. Save the “fight” chants for games against teams that stand a fighting chance. The teams that have a reason to talk back and won’t stand by as we spout profanities just because we’re good at football.
Citing rampant drinking without citing names is like calling yourself a paper without have any journalistic integrity. The only reason your rag is on line is that no one would dear spend money on publishing it. Where is your proof or evidence? Even more important, if you are SOOOO offended, why don’t you do something? I, a parent, have found the kids vocal, perhaps annoying, but never “over the top” as you might suggest. So we revel in victory, so we revel in emotion at the sight of great plays. So what. I would encourage this cyberrag to try and do what others do. Cite facts or opinion, but tell the reader which you are.
First off, we would never name names simply because we wouldn’t want to incriminate the guilty. For facts, how about the several students seen vomiting about the Skyline grounds? How about the student section becoming rowdy to the point of people losing balance on the bleachers? How about the countless people that were escorted away by school administrators likely for notice of intoxication.
Anybody with any sort of an eye could have noticed the blatant alcohol consumption in the student section. They weren’t overzealous because they wanted to beat the Kangaroos, they were overzealous because they had extra molecules bouncing throughout their body. You would have to be ignorant to ignore it. We have several pictures of fans going insane. I do not want to post them because of privacy issues, but the evidence is here. We couldn’t take a breath-a-lyzer to each and every one of them, but in the last game it was over-the-top.
I am not saying we cannot enjoy a victory, nor can the drunk ones not enjoy a victory, but to ignore the fact that many under-aged students were drinking is absurd. Plus, that wasn’t even the focus of the article.
—
Don’t you have better things to be doing, anyway?
Anonymous #2,
Is it not hypocritical that you are complaining that we did not cite the names of the mass of students drinking, yet you yourself have not even revealed your own name? If you have such passionate opinions, do not hide behind a veil of anonymity.
Why don’t we take action against this? These are our peers. Does it seem reasonable to expect under-aged drinking to be contained by high school students? I have made the choice not to drink under-age, and I have also encouraged my friends, and even acquaintances not to drink under-age, but it is not my responsibility to enforce the law. I do not have the power to stop student x from drinking just because I am a student myself. That is ridiculous. Our own principal has recognized the problem to be of such magnitude that gum and face paint are no longer allowed at our football games. Does this action not indicate a substantial problem?
Anonymous #2,
As a student and friend to many I have seen embarrass themselves at football games, I am shocked by your ignorance. I can’t speak for Bill and Jeff or Plateatimes in general, but I personally have been extremely offended by some of the things I see students do and have done things to stop it, the right way to solve these issues and putting names on a public website would do nothing to solve the problem. As Skyline Director of Student Culture it is my role to work with the trials of drug abuse in our school and I would be more than happy to meet with you and talk about solutions. It is not the role of a local student newspaper to step up and solve alcoholism on the Plateau. If you don’t think the student section is over the top, then I hope to god you have not seen half the things I have, kids puking and falling down stands to name a few. Because if you are a parent, as you say, and don’t find this “over the top” then that is the root of the problem. Honestly, if you wish to work on finding a solution to something that it is obvious many see as a problem I would be more than happy to talk to you.