Under the leadership of new head coach Kim Dameron, football improved its performance ending the season with a 2-11 record. Dameron remained positive with the team’s progress under his leadership, asserting their visible improvement.

   “I was proud of the kids at how hard they worked and the improvements that we made. Even though it didn’t really show up on our record, I felt like we got better every week,” Dameron said.

   Several standouts led the team. Senior Landon Chaffey became one of the top tacklers in the state, and junior Luke Wyatt received honors as an All-Conference receiver. 

  “So there were some guys that really individually did some really good things we just had a hard time sometimes putting, putting the ball in the end zone enough to be able to just put it all together,” Dameron said.

   Dameron emphasized implementing changes, but remained fruitless because of the restrictions on all contact sports to limit the spread of COVID-19.  Despite the setbacks, changes in areas such as signaling, increasing the tempo of play, and boosting team morale contributed to the improvements. 

   “With the ongoing pandemic in the background, we were limited in time to implement a completely new system. While we changed a few minor things to the strategy, we kept a lot of the old methods as well. Coach Dameron came into the team and gave us a new never-give-up mentality and a we-can-always-win attitude,” senior Kale Sheets said.

   Sheets and his teammates stay optimistic that when restrictions loosen, Dameron’s strategies and improvements add benefits to the team in the long run.

   “I think Coach Dameron is a good coach and will have a lot of success with Southside football. I believe that he can make Southside into a championship contender for years to come,” Sheets said.