It’s at this point in a season where teams are either made or broken. After a crushing 20-22 defeat against Wyoming Seminary, a stunning last minute loss against Kiski 26-33, and this weekend’s blowout by Episcopal Academy 8-35, Hill football now finds itself in a 0-3 hole that will be difficult to climb out of, with MAPL teams Peddie, Hun, and Blair coming up quickly.

With six games remaining in the season, there is still a chance for the team to salvage a winning record. The question is – what is the next move for Hill football?

“[We need] to fill some of the positions that we have to make up for since we lost some people,” said Anthony Martinez ‘18. “People just need to find different spots, adapt, and find different positions.”

Last season, the football team lost some key players, including Jack Bowen ’17 and Simon Krizak ’17, who went on to play Division 1 football at Stetson University and Bucknell University respectively. The football team won three games last year, a major improvement over previous seasons.

After the past three weekends, some frustrations arise.

“We’re trying to play together better,” Brennan Keil ‘19 said. “We haven’t been playing together too well. Once we come together and get focused during practice, we’ll be better. Staying together is a big thing.”

Issues with team dynamics  seem to be an issue for the football team, as apparent in the Coach’s write up after the game against Episcopal.

“We needed to heal as a team and focus all of our efforts and energy on the TEAM…The TEAM must work to win next week against a talented Springside Chestnut Hill team,” Holloway said. 

Still, the football teams continues to put up a lighthearted, almost ambivalent tone towards the rest of the school.

With weekly announcements about Justin Adedinsewo ‘19’s football picks, it gives the rest of the school an impression that the football team doesn’t really care. The students all get a laugh out of those announcements, but on Friday night, only Episcopal Academy was laughing.

The football team is at a crossroads.

They can put their heads down and throw in the towel, cursing their bad luck, or they can do something different.

They can put their heads down and grind out practices. They can fight, claw, and scratch out wins. They can earn the privilege of having hundreds of people go to their games. They can earn to privilege of making goofy lunch announcements.

Right now, they haven’t earned it – they’ve taken those privileges as a right.