Last year, Bellevue East had their first winning season in almost 20 years. Both the players and the coaches have been working hard and trying to recreate the experience for the upcoming football season.

A winning season can be a great celebration, but a lot of hard work goes into getting to that point. Players, coaches and everyone else involved work together to make those moments happen.

“Our coaches telling us how much our community believes in us and the crowd, especially with the Gatorade scrimmage, is great,” senior Erick Gomez said.

The changes in the practices and coaching strategies has made an impact on how the football games and seasons play out, causing the team to do better. One of these changes is the addition of new coaches, like head football coach Aaron Thumann, and the help of the managers.

“I think the way he [Thumann]  has changed the program is definitely better than how it was my freshman year,” senior Alex Palm, who is a football manager, said. “The players have been doing and performing better than in years before.”

The coaches play a big role in how the season plays out, whether with encouragement or new strategies. They are able to make an impression not just on the players, but the team as a whole.

“When I took over, I really just approached this team with a lot of love, positivity, and a belief in what they are capable of,” Thumann said.

The players on the Bellevue East football team worked to create the environment that they needed to have a winning season. They are trying to get to the same point as last season, and get some more wins.

“They knew what they wanted to accomplish and they came to practice everyday and pushed each other to get better,” Thumann said. “They had fun and they held each other accountable.”

The football team intends to work just as hard as last season. Their dedication to working as a team has not wavered since last season either. 

“We have more integrity than we did last year, and also more people want it this year,” Gomez said. “Our team dynamic is definitely there this year.”

There have been many changes in this year’s football team, many players have graduated and many more have joined. The team is now much more diverse, and they intend to continue to do their best.

 “There will be challenges and there will be growing pains, but I know we are going to keep growing and keep changing our best and we will take more positive steps forward,” Thumann said.