Head Football Coach Mark Wattenbarger is overhauling the program’s culture and facilities to establish a new standard for a roster currently operating without a single senior.
Coach Mark Wattenbarger said his primary focus since taking over the program has been engaging the community to help modernize facilities that have seen little improvement in two decades. Wattenbarger said the effort is designed to provide his players with a environment they can take pride in as they rebuild the team’s foundation.
“We’re about 20 years behind in trying to get things caught up to give them a place where they want to be every day and something they can be proud of,” Wattenbarger said. “We’ve already got the locker room is probably about 90% done as far as revamping it. And we got some new flooring down, we got new lockers, we tore all the old lockers out, we got some new paint.”
Wattenbarger said local donors have contributed financially to the renovations, which include new graphics in the locker room. Wattenbarger said the next phase of the project involves updating the weight room to move away from what he described as a “drab, dungeon” atmosphere.
“It’s just little things and that always add up to the big things and that’s the message I’m trying to get across is if we’ll do all the little things right, the big things take care of themselves,” Wattenbarger said. “The standards that we set, you know, we try to do things the same every day. We’re not flashy, and that’s the mentality we’re trying to instill is you gotta go out and earn it.”
Wattenbarger said the current roster features zero seniors and only four juniors, forcing younger athletes to step into leadership roles earlier than usual. Wattenbarger said the team is focusing on eliminating self-inflicted mistakes like turnovers and missed assignments to compete at a high school level regardless of their age.
“We’re a high school football team. The other team couldn’t care less what grade we’re in,” Wattenbarger said. “And that’s what we’re preaching. We gotta play to a level of a high school football team. So, that’s what we’re going to try to do.”
Wattenbarger said he prioritizes a “team football” philosophy over individual stardom and expects all 11 players on the field to execute their jobs consistently. Wattenbarger said several juniors, including Levi Neal, Zach Galyon, Kipton White, and Harlan Farman, have emerged as players who are buying into the new expectations of the program.
“I don’t know that we’re dependent on one person or three people,” Wattenbarger said. “We’ve got to have 11 people doing their job about 100% of the time. And that’s how we’re going to have success.”
