The last time Hastings won a conference championship in football, none of its current players were even alive.
"2001," senior running back and safety Keegan Olson said. "I actually knew that. I looked it up."
"No I wasn't," Senior tight end and defensive end Evan Eastman said when told that he probably wasn't even born yet in 2001.
"If we do win," Olson added. "I think it would be one of the biggest moments we've had this season."
"I think it makes it more exciting," senior tight end and defensive back Zack Perry said. "We want to bring something to the school that hasn't been in a long time."
The Saxons varsity finished 4-5 each of the past two seasons and the players say they took it upon themselves to get better while the school was closed because of COVID-19.
"It has been really hard with the coronavirus getting in the gym and everything," senior linebacker Corbin Ulrich said. "Me and some of my other buddies on the team we went and bought weight equipment, we drove all the way to Ohio at midnight and we have just been putting in more work than the rest of the people I think."
The motivation was simple according to Ulrich.
"Tired of losing! We have always been a winning team and come on varsity and lose, it's not OK."
Hastings lost the season opener to Parma Western and then trailed perennial power Lumen Christi 13-0 at halftime of game two.
"That second half was a big turning point for us," 7th year head coach Jamie Murphy said. "We came in the locker room at halftime and the kids confidence was just sky high, they were like 'we got this coach, we're OK.' That was a real confidence booster, real insight for us coaches to see the kids take over."
The Saxons came back to win the game by a point and they haven't looked back, now riding a three game winning streak into Friday's game against Coldwater (3-1).
"I'm just coming in here and putting in the same work I do every week," Ulrich said about preparing for the Cardinals. "Work my tail off and just hoping to get some big hits."
Hastings will host Coldwater on Friday at seven p.m. at Baum Stadium.
