By Angela Brunk
Junior classmen Houston Bowlin from Derby High School is lacing up his cleats to prepare for the first football game of the season. Bowlin plays defensive tackle/nose guard for The Panthers. Like most high school athletes, the ultimate goal is to get a state championship title and Bowlin is no different. He and his teammates have their eyes set on preparing for postseason play. During the season, Bowlin mentioned he wants everyone on the team to stay healthy, since football season can wrack some hefty injuries on a team.
Bowlin is most looking forward to the new teams and competition Derby will get to play this season. Hays and Valley Center are teams Derby has not seen in recent years, and it will be interesting to see how the new competition stacks up.
Going into the season, Bowlin worked on training to know his position better for this season. Bowlin hit the gym to do various workouts to increase his speed and strength. In addition to this training, Bowlin also went to camps to increase his skills on the football field. With the extra practice and training, Bowlin will be bound to reach his goal of a minimum of 50 tackles during the season and would like to have a couple of sacks as well.
Bowlin is just entering his junior year and has yet to decide on his future college, but he would love to play football in college. Not only does Bowlin play football, but during the spring sport’s season, Bowlin can be found on the golf course competing for Derby.
