Fall sports just ended, which means winter sports are just around the corner. Winter sports consist of boys and girls’ basketball, co-ed swimming, and wrestling.  Winter sports try-outs started on November 16, but it’s not too late to try out for some sports.

The wrestling team is a prime example of toughness and hard work.  Franklin’s wrestling team had a successful year last year and looks to continue to be successful this year.  The wrestlers have to go through some intense conditioning to prepare for the season.

“It’s a six minute fight and you’re using all your energy,” Gabe Kirch, senior, said.  “Practice is like conditioning.”

The boys basketball team is looking to win state again after their state championship last year. The team has proven themselves to be contenders for a repeat this year.

The girls basketball team is looking to return to state after making it to state for the first time in 13 years last year.  The girls team is in a rebuilding season after losing most of their players due to graduation.  However, the girls won’t let that ruin their basketball season.

“The team is like family because we work hard, but we have fun at the same time,” Jasmine Willis, senior, said.  “Coach works us pretty hard at practice, but it pays off during the game.”

The swimming team is looking for another great season after having a competitive season last year.  The swim team is known to show great team sprit at their swim meets.   

“It’s a winter sport and I didn’t have any winter sports to play,” Clay Joyce, sophomore, said.  “There are no try-outs so pretty much anyone who shows up is on the team.”

The boys basketball team’s first game is on December 8 against Bishop Blanchet.

The girls basketball team’s opens up the season on December 9 against Bishop Blanchet also.

Prior to every basketball season there is basketball conditioning. Basketball conditioning this year was a little bit different from last year. Besides the fact that more people showed up last year, this years’ conditioning was run by the C-team boy’s basketball Coach Gregory Pharr also known as G-Feezy. Gregory Pharr ran last years conditioning, but he came back with some new drills from his new company Next Level Sports. This years conditioning was harder than ever.

“The last six weeks have been good. The athletes that come consistently have been making improvements. I run all these drills in my company and don’t charge the athletes so I just ask for them to run as hard as they can to get better. Next Level Sports steps your game up,” Gregory Pharr, basketball coach, said.

Basketball conditioning this year was different because the gym was open from after school until 4:30 and conditioning started at 4:30 and ended at 6:00. The attendance of conditioning dropped from last year.

“Around 25 people showed,” Maritess Miramontez, junior, said.

This is down from the 50 to 60 that attended last year. Basketball conditioning had a lot more attendees last year because of all the College coaches showed up due to Peyton Siva, Sterling Carter, Fred Wilson and Chris Holmes, and players wanted to get noticed by colleges.

Last year, conditioning consisted mostly of running. This year, there are a variety of different drills. These include the Rapid Fire ladder drill, the box jump drills, weight room, track, and backboard taps.

“I like the ladders and box drills,” Michael Daniels, junior, said.

Many people got really tired during the Rapid Fire ladder drills, even so, the duration of the drill lasts about 30 seconds to one minute.

It’s imperative for all players that plan on playing Varsity basketball to go to conditioning or they have almost no chance of making the varsity team. The tryouts started on the 16 of November. You will need your paperwork turned in to Ms. J.J Wilkerson office and your physical needs to be taken care of. All that has to be done before you can touch the main court.

J.B. Marquiraya, junior, reps his favorite team the Seattle Seahawks while hanging out by the football field after school.

For all the football fans out there the season is already half way over.  Before the season, according to Bleacherreport.com, the predictions for the 2009-2010 playoff teams are the San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans, Carolina Panthers, Minnesota Vikings, Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, San Diego Chargers, and The Philadelphia Eagles. 

Will all of these teams make the playoffs?  Maybe some, or maybe none of the teams listed above will be in the postseason action. The following are the current standings of the division leaders and the teams that will be in the playoffs if the season had ended this past weekend.

The best team in the AFC is the Indianapolis Colts at 9-0. Followed by the Cincinnati Bengals at 7-2.  The New England Patriots, Denver Broncos, Pittsburgh Steelers, and the San Diego Chargers all come next at 6-3.

In the NFC the teams are the New Orleans Saints (9-0), and Minnesota Vikings (8-1). The Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals are 6-3. There are multiple teams coming in at 5-4, including the Atlanta Falcons and the New York Giants. 

Mid-season success or any football success for that matter reflects on good stats.  If the stats are not good enough it won’t result in many victories, much less go to the playoffs.  Take Drew Brees for example, Quarter Back of the New Orleans Saints.  He is number one in the NFL in passing touchdowns and is in the top five in passing yards.  Another undefeated team is The Indianapolis Colts.  Their best player is Peyton Manning.   There is a lot of speculation of who the MVP is so far in the season.

“Drew Brees is the MVP because he is amazing, dominant and his stats are ridiculous,” David Fort, social studies teacher, said.

“Either Brett Farve or Peyton Manning,” Zeb Davis, sophomore, said.

The player who is the MVP will not always make it to the super bowl. Manning was the MVP last year and the Colts lost to the San Diego Chargers in the first round.   This may not be any indication of which team will be the new super bowl champion.

“The New Orleans Saints because they have been killing and no one can stop them,” Eric Sidwell, senior, said.

“Probably the Colts, Saints or Vikings.  They are the best teams because of their records,” Said Davis.