I have had the desire to film a hype video for Willow Springs since I started this series back in 2015. I haven’t been back to this southern Missouri community since I graduated in 2008. The timing just never worked out. My old football teammate and current assistant coach, Dylan Carter, reached out saying the 2019 football team had something special. I looked at their home schedule to pick a game to highlight, but the only week that would work was against Mountain Grove. Willow hasn’t beaten Mountain Grove since 2005. It is a lot easier to make a football hype video when the team wins, but I’ve highlighted a few programs who lost (Not taking any credit, but the win record for games that I highlight is over 90%. Vegas, take notice).
Convincing my wife to take a long weekend to visit the Ozarks was easier than I expected. I could tell she was curious about visiting the town from all my crazy high school stories. We loaded up our SUV with my ridiculous amount of camera gear and our 5 month old and headed south. Driving through Willow Springs brought back so many memories. G&W was still hopping, Pizza Americana was still feeding Bear nation, John Bailey’s pearly whites still smiled from the billboards, and main street was filled with maroon and white. We watched the homecoming parade and the pep rally, then headed to the field. My wife noticed all the pickup trucks lined up outside the stadium. Even with the beautiful stadium expansion, the tradition of the trucks backing into the stadium lives on.
Zach White (#81) and Jonah Smith (#12) passed away this summer in a tragic accident. Their helmets, cleats, and uniforms hang in the lockers next to their teammates. I spent some time capturing slider shots of their locker not knowing exactly how to include this in a “hype” video. Then the players started gearing up for the game. They painted 81 and 12 on their arms with eye black. They wrote “never forget” on their helmet decals. They carried their uniforms to the coin toss. Zach and Jonah have inspired this team.
I get to experience many different coaching styles and cultures highlighting a different program friday nights in the fall. Back in my day (I’m officially a has-been), our way of focusing on the game was total silence. I wasn’t the biggest fan of this style, but it worked for some. This year’s team had music bumping on some of the best speakers I’ve ever heard. They were loose but not silly. The coaches gave some quick pregame speeches then something really cool happened. The team kneeled together and were lead in a prayer by my old teammate, Jon White. The culture of this program was so much fun to highlight!
The team exited the locker room, down the steps, and headed to the field led by senior Jaron Story and the Willow Bear flag. They lined up shoulder to shoulder. There are few things as glorious as a mullet flowing in the autumn sunset. Kobie Bunch’s business-in-the-front, party-in-the-back screamed freedom during the National Anthem. The starters took the field one-by-one, followed by the team. Game on!
Willow dominated offensively right off the bat. They drove down the field, but were stopped by Mountain Grove’s bend-don’t-break defense. After a missed field goal and a Grove touchdown, Willow again drove the down the field. Willow fumbled on the goal line after a questionable knee down, facemask, and ball actually breaking the goal line missed call.
Willow’s defense stepped up big, holding Grove to no other big drives. Their offense found the endzone once by QB Brady Walton and once by RB Tryton Henley. These two TDs with their dominate defense were enough to snap Grove’s 15 year streak.
The timing was perfect for this story. My wife got to visit with some of my old friends and experience a Willow Springs Friday night. Thank you to the coaches for having us. I can’t wait to see what else this program accomplishes this season. Go Bears!
