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Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Backbone for the Bucks Found In 11 Players

PANAMA CITY, Fla. - It took the Bozeman Bucks nine games before getting the school’s first-ever varsity football win for a program in it’s second season.

This season, Bozeman is winless in five games.  But, the team’s looking better from last year.  Just a few fatal mistakes here and there have cost them.

The reason the team’s looking better, senior leadership.

“Basically since they were in the 8th grade, they’ve been the oldest kids on campus,” Head coach Loren Tillman said.

The Bozeman kids have been playing football pretty much all their lives.  But it was just last year that the school fielded a varsity football program.

“I think last year going in,” Tillman said.  “It was going to be a tough year.”

“The programs coming up slowly but surely and the way that we’re helping, it’s just going out there and giving 100% each time,” Senior tight-end Brad Putnam said.  “It don’t matter if its a 9th grader in there or a 12th grader, we’ll hit them as hard and as long as we can.”

Eleven seniors are on this year’s Bucks squad.  All 11 having the honor of being the first-ever graduating class on the Bozeman football team. 

“It’s hard to do sometimes, even the sophomores and juniors have to lead the team, sine we only have 11 seniors,” Putnam added.

“We’re trying to teach them how to play tough,” Senior lineman Travis Cutting said.  “Teach them the qualities to win.”

Winning hasn’t come easy for the Bucks, or even at all this season.  But Coach Tillman finds a positive out of every situation.

“They’re setting the right example,” Tillman said.  “But the small things, the little things that need to make you a program may not result in wins for the senior class, but will result in wins for program down the line.”

“We’re going to come back in three or four years,” Putnam said.  “Bozeman will no longer going to be the team everyone schedules for Homecoming.  They’re going to be the team that everyone says, ‘Well guys go out there and do your best because Bozeman’s a powerhouse.’ They’re going to be scared of us.”

Bozeman looks for it’s first win at Vernon Friday night.

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