Nazareth’s Junior Varsity football team is also known as the Blue-White team and just like the Varsity team, they’ve been working hard since the start of their season. Three games in, their record is currently 1-2.

Sophomore Nolan Morris (#26) is a linebacker who has mixed feelings about the comparisons between the JV and Varsity teams. He says that not getting as much attention is not great. But he adds, “Sometimes it is also good because we don’t have all of the pressure that Varsity does, so we can just have fun.” He thinks that even though football is enjoyable, it is also sometimes stressful. While he thinks that the team works together on and off of the field for the most part, he recognizes the challenges when the team does not work together and “people get too ahead of themselves and try to make plays they can’t make.”

Sophomore Diego Vela (#54) has played football for 8 years and is now a lineman on the Blue-White team. He thinks that the team for the most part is a cohesive unit, but they’re human at the same time. “We all work together as one, but on the field we have our slow days and off the field we have our slow days too.” One thing that Vela would like to see change is having more fans cheer them on in the stands.  

Sophomore Armarion Parnell (#4) plays quarterback and is a recent transfer student from Oswego High School where he also played football. He says, “Transferring into a new school and being the quarterback is stressful and hard to get used to, but it’s cool.” He especially likes the feeling of “brotherhood” that being on the football team offers. Parnell says that the coaches are welcoming and pay attention to everyone as a team and as individuals when they are struggling or need help. 

Naz History teacher Mr. Letcher is also the coach of the Blue-White team this year. He became interested in coaching because he played when he was in school and has been coaching for 5 years. He enjoys getting to know all of the players and thinks that football teaches valuable lessons. 

Mr. Letcher says that the team chemistry is strong from what he has seen on and off the field this year. He adds, “one of our strengths would be the ability to overcome one of our weaknesses which is the fact that we don’t have a lot of players compared to some of the larger schools. The fact is, we have sophomores that are making freshmen better and freshmen that are competing against sophomores to make themselves better, I think it is actually an advantage that we have.” 

Letcher has a lot of faith in his team and is excited to see the results of tonight’s game against Fenwick so fill the stands tonight to cheer for the Blue-White!