Tampa – At a school known for its prowess in sports other than football,  Quarterback Shug Oyegunle (’13) along with the arrival of his new Head Coach Jason Stokes from Middleton, as well as the appointment of a new district this Fall hopes to add the Cowboys Football Team to that equation.

Although the Cowboys finished 3-7 last year in addition to the departure of previous head coach depart for family reasons at the end of the season, it has not dampened the spirit of the more than half the roster that returns. Oyegunle, now with a year under his belt feels like this is a chance to erase any lingering memories of last season.  He feels that starting as a sophomore and getting that experience has helped.

“I’m really excited. I feel really good. I feel like I’m starting to know what I’m looking for and what I’m going to do during the course of a play.” said Oyegunle.  In addition to the reps, his assessment of his play from last year was quite candid. Shug feels as though this year needs to be different.

“There’s so many opportunities last year that I should have taken, but I didn’t. I’ve got to learn to take advantage of the opportunities that are given to me over the course of a game.”

Gaither also moves out of their district with rival Alonso, North Hillsborough foe Wharton, as well as Plant and welcomes some fresh faces is the newly minted 7A Classification. Their newfound assignment sees in-county Chamberlain, Tampa Bay Tech, Freedom, Wiregrass Ranch from just over the border in Pasco County, and a soon-to-be heated rivalry with 3rd-year Steinbrenner who sits just to their north. All-in-all however, it’s something that Oyegunle feels more than happy to get to work preparing for.

“The new schedule is something we gotta take advantage of; this year feels perfect. It’s why we’re working so hard right now. We’ve got everything set up we just gotta go out there and do it. Coach Stokes is going to work us hard and that’s what we need.”