The English High School football team this year has reversed course from previous woeful seasons, but that doesn’t mean it’s been easy.
“We are absolutely on the right track, but there has been challenges. You don’t control what’s on the track,” said Blue and Blue head coach Chris Boswell, whose team was 3-4 when the Gazette spoke with him on Nov. 1. The two previous seasons, English had only won one game.
“This year, we are competing and we have come out on top a couple of times,” he said.
Boswell said one of the obstacles on the track has been getting players to show up every day. Asked why players weren’t showing up, Boswell said, “I wish I could get inside their brains and find out.”
He said there seems to be a bunch of different reasons, including what’s going on in their lives.
But one player who has been dependable is Han’Jie Deng. Boswell said Deng, who is a senior linebacker and running back, has been the team’s most improved player.
“He’s learned a lot and has had the opportunity to play,” Boswell said about Deng, who joined the team last year, but did not play much.
He added that Deng is “a little guy, but he is not afraid.”
Boswell said his two top players this season are Ruben Pena-Sanchez, a junior tight end and defensive end, and Dhe’Jour Releford, a junior quarterback and free safety.
The Blue and Blue had three remaining games when the Gazette spoke with Boswell. He said each game will be competitive and that his team will need to focus on running, blocking and tackling in order to win.