The locker room has always been a place for the football boys to celebrate wins and, overall, just have a good time. However, the 2023 season has been something special. Couches, TVs, and speakers were brought into the locker room as part of a project set in place by seniors Mason Poulter, Drake Booker, and Jon Shemwell.

“In years prior, we still played Guitar Hero, you could say,” Poulter said. “We would hook it up to someone’s car who had movie players in the back.”

Playing in the back of a car is not ideal and can only include a few people, so they came together and brainstormed a plan. They were going to ask coach Josh Lucas if they could bring it into the locker room.

“We had a super old TV in the locker room, so we said screw it and asked Coach Lucas if we could bring a guitar hero into the locker room,” Booker said. “We hooked it up and started playing, then more people joined, and it just became a thing.”

At the moment, they only had four folding chairs to sit on, and as more people joined in on Guitar Hero, they needed more places to sit. Then Poulter got a bright idea: he was going to bring something a little more comfy to sit on.

“I was just driving down the road and saw a free couch and decided to bring it into the locker room,” Poulter said. “Coach Lucas was totally fine with it, surprisingly. He even helped us get it into the locker room.”

Lucas thought it was a great idea for the boys to bring the couches into the locker room and make it more of a home environment.

“I think this is a great opportunity for all the boys to connect,” Lucas said. “The coaching staff and I are really hoping that this stays. We can really see the team becoming closer and more connected, which is what makes a great team.”

While the coaching staff allows it because it makes for amazing team bonding, the players love it for a different reason. Playing Guitar Hero is fun, and allowing them to play it in the locker room where they don’t have to mind the noise or rules of their parents makes it that much better. But overall, the whole reason for bringing Guitar Hero to the locker room is, “We were just trying to shred with the boys,” Shemwell said.