By Trey LaMay’25
After a long summer, the students are back on campus. Football is one of the main sports on campus in the fall, and with the blow of a whistle, the team has started practicing. Football is one of the longest-running sports at the FGS. Gunn students have been playing football on campus since the mid-1850s. Mr. Gunn was a strong believer in the football and athletic program at the school. One of the tenets was his belief that students should be active throughout the day.
Even with the football team’s rich and long history, in 2015, the school decided to switch to 8-man football. This decision was based on the decline of student interest in football. Athletic Director Mike Marich knew he had to make a change and decided to turn the team into 8-man football.
This year’s team is expected to have a strong season. They are filled with strong returning players and new players hopeful to make big impacts. The team lost key game-changers from last year, such as quarterback Taylor Brown, running backs Andrew Rainville and Jack Ellman, and receiver Angus MacArthur. Yet the team is hopeful, with newcomers and returners being able to fill in the void left by last year’s seniors. The team started off their year with a scrimmage against the Millbrook School on September 14th. This will be the team’s chance to discover the starting QB and other pivotal position battles. The team is led by a dominating senior group looking to bring a championship to the school.
The network has spoken to some of the players about their expectations for the season. Senior running back Owen Laatsch talked about returning to football after a two-year hiatus. “It’s fun to be back on the team playing with everyone after not playing the last two years. After multiple ankle injuries, I couldn’t play anymore but decided this would be my last chance to play and had to take it.” The Network also spoke with the Senior QB, Cam Willis, on his thoughts about the season. “I think it’s fun, and I’m able to play again. I can’t wait to try to help out the team in any way and hope that we’re able to win a lot of games.” The team is led by a dominating senior group looking to bring a championship to the school.
