Written by: Liam Schulte

On Thursday, October 5th, the Grizzly football team faced off against the Castle View Sabercats. In that game, a lot of grit and fight was shown from both sides, but in the end, the Sabercats came away with a big win.

One player, Drew Prusse (12), was thrust into action as an emergency quarterback after an injury to Ryan Gonzales (12) the previous game. “It was definitely new playing quarterback after having all those reps at other positions.” Drew said. Drew threw for 57 yards and rushed for 102 on 17 carries. Even though Drew wasn’t able to push his team to the win, he showed tons of determination and received a bunch of respect from those around him for fighting in an unfamiliar situation.

The Grizzlies fell to a 3-4 record, while the Sabercats bounced back after their five-game winning streak was snapped by Valor Christian a week before.

But, this game meant much more to Grizzly Nation as it also served as a celebration for ThunderRidge’s homecoming. Students packed the stands in their respective themed attire; green for seniors and sophomores and juniors and freshman in blue clothing. It was an electric and fun environment to have at Halftime Help, with students participating in chants, cheering on their team, and packing the stands, as this game hosted the largest student section for the Grizzlies this year yet.

At the game, Homecoming Royalty winners were announced, which was an amazing moment for all involved. Also, amazing cheer and poms performances followed the announcements for royalty, doing great as always. Even when game action is stopped on the field, the action doesn’t end just there.

Although ThunderRidge wasn’t able to capture a win in this game, there were plenty of small and big wins, on and off the field. It’s always a great time at ThunderRidge during Homecoming week, and this year wasn’t any different. Even after a tough loss against the Sabercats, the Grizzlies are still very much in the race for a spot in the 5A State Championship bracket. The team looks forward to bouncing back against an in-league rival in Highlands Ranch on October 14th.