On May 25, Vandegrift held their annual Thursday Night Bites fundraiser and spring football game for the upcoming 2018 football season.

“Every year we do the spring game to help evaluate certain people for certain roles on the team,” junior Spencer Jones said. “It’s also a fun time for everyone to come out and enjoy the fun game that we all love.”

This football game was especially important for our junior football players, because it was the first time on their field without the current seniors, leading them as a team

“This game feels different from others because we are given new roles as leaders,” junior Ryan Merrifield said. “We have to set examples for everyone and even get on to the younger kids if they are acting out.”

The coaches use this game to test out players, to see what positions they would be good in for the upcoming season. The coaches also use this game as a time to see what players have excelled in the previous season, and what players haven’t worked as hard.

“I’ve grown a lot as a player in the past season,’ junior Bryson Brown said. “I’ve learned different ways to run my routes and learning to play for the team, instead of playing for myself.”

Many players believe that the football program has made them more disciplined people and enjoy the comradery that is involved with being on the team.

“This program has taught me how to push through tough times,” junior Spencer Jones said. “Our coaches have always taught us that there’s a bigger picture than football and that we should always focus on what’s most important in our lives.