Webster City seniors Trey Shannon, Ryan Zuetlau and Chase Rattenborg receive the team's Class 3A state participation trophy from WCHS athletic director Joe Shanks following Friday's 23-14 loss to BHRV in the state quarterfinal round. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

BE PROUD SENIORS: It was two years ago and the 2018 season had just ended when I started hearing the quiet worries about the future of the Webster City football program.

The Lynx were set to enter a rough period, or so the theory went. Numbers were down, there wasn’t much size, the talent was lacking, and so on.

Expect a tough couple of years, that was the general consensus.

But Webster City’s players never listened to the naysayers. Instead, they believed in themselves and each other, and proved everyone wrong.

The results don’t lie. Over the last two seasons, WCHS amassed a 15-4 record, including 9-1 this season. It won a Class 3A District 2 title, reached No. 6 in the state rankings, and advanced to the state quarterfinals.

The 10 seniors on this team did that. And they should be reminded of it whenever possible.

“I wouldn’t have wanted to play with anyone else,” Devon Stoakes, a junior who followed the lead of his elders, said. “From the group chats to getting people together over quarantine … we knew we were capable of doing this and no one else did. No other group could have got us here.”

Well said, Devon.

BE PROUD OF THIS PROGRAM: It’s no secret that the Webster City football program faces disadvantages against a Class 3A landscape that is dominated by suburban schools with ample resources at their disposal.

The Lynx roster is dwarfed almost every time it steps onto the field, that’s just a fact.

But you know what? It really hasn’t mattered in recent years.

Over the last six seasons, WCHS has reached the 3A state quarterfinals three times, and in 2016 it played for a state championship.

Do me a favor, folks — never question the commitment and the heart of these coaches and players. Not that many of you have, I understand that, but see this as a friendly reminder anyway.