This was not your typical Solon Senior Night.
The storied Senior Night traditions for Solon remained the same, with the announcement of each senior athlete, the passing of the torch to the kindergarteners, the senior tunnel, and the bittersweet emotions. However, on the other side of the field was a team and a town grieving the loss of a fallen player.
About two weeks prior, one of Washington’s players, Carson Ryan, lost his life in a hunting accident. Ryan, like the Solon players being celebrated, was also a senior in high school. In one moment, those at the Spartans’ stadium celebrated the end of an era for the seniors, and in another, they mourned the loss of a young man who deserved to celebrate his own Senior Night.
After the game, spectators were told to remain seated as there was going to be a memorial for Ryan. A silence overtook the crowd as players and coaches from both teams came together after the clock struck zero. Near center field, a sea of black and white jerseys formed as Solon and Washington kneeled together in remembrance of Carson Ryan. In this moment, it wasn’t just football players kneeling together; it was a community reaching out to another to console them in the wake of a tragedy.
Despite the big emotions of the night, both teams were able to suit up and compete. The Spartans emerged victorious as they dominated the Washington Demons for all four quarters, not allowing them to score a single point. Going into the game, the Demons averaged 27 points per game and had rushed for over 1200 yards and 19 rushing touchdowns through six games. This run game wasn’t a challenge for the Spartans as they held the Demons to 18 rushing yards on 22 carries.
“We played our normal defense and played to the best of our abilities,” said Kyler Jensen, a Solon linebacker and the team’s leading tackler.
The Demons had issues with the snap on offense and special teams all night long, and Solon was able to capitalize on these miscues.
“We kind of just noticed [the issues with the snap] this game… if that’s going to happen, we’re going to pick it up and make plays,” said Jensen.
Making plays off those miscues is exactly what the Solon defense did. In the first half, Solon was able to get two fumble recoveries on plays where the Washington offense had bad snaps. Then late in the second quarter, Tripp Johnson blocked a punt after a bad long snap, and Simon Einwalter was able to get a scoop and score for Solon’s defense, putting them up 35-0.
The defensive dominance took a lot of pressure off the offense, but they stayed explosive throughout the night. Solon quarterback Eli Kampman threw three passing touchdowns and rushed for another touchdown on a quarterback sneak.
Kampman’s first passing touchdown was to sophomore wide receiver Owen Bock, who turned a short bubble screen into a 65-yard receiving touchdown. The second passing touchdown of the night went to junior wide receiver Maddox Kelly on a 10-yard push pass that turned into a touchdown. Kelly had a rushing touchdown earlier in the night as well. The third passing touchdown and final touchdown on the night went to junior wide receiver Cody Milliman, putting the Spartans up 42-0.
Solon senior linebacker Tripp Johnson said, “We can go far, and that’s the goal.”
While the Senior Night game was held on Friday, the traditions started earlier in the week when senior football players wrote a heartfelt message on the back of a self-portrait that was then given to their parents.
Then on Senior Night, seniors from the football team, marching band, cheer squad, and cross-country team walked across the track with their parents. The announcer would then introduce the senior and their parents, followed by who the senior’s favorite teacher was during their high school years.
The last tradition before the game is the ceremonial passing of the torch. This tradition is where Solon seniors who were just honored go and “pass the torch” to this year’s Lakeview Elementary kindergarten class. This tradition has been going on for years and is something the current seniors participated in back when they were in kindergarten.
The final tradition of the night is the senior tunnel that the Solon football team does for Senior Night each year. The tunnel is made up of the parents of senior football players and teammates in lower grades. Each senior then has their name announced by the announcer, and they enter the tunnel.
“It’s really emotional… [My parents] were crying, I was crying,” said Jensen.
This was Jensen’s and most likely other players’ favorite tradition of the night, as it allowed them to embrace their parents, teammates, and coaches following the completion of their last regular-season home game.
Solon will likely be back at Spartan Stadium to host a playoff game as they remain undefeated at 7-0 on the season and sit near the top of the Class 3A rankings. They have two more regular-season games, both of which are road games; their next matchup is against Mount Pleasant, and the week after, their regular-season finale is against Fort Madison.
Elsewhere in 3A-4
Fairfield hammered Fort Madison 50-12 while Mount Pleasant ruined Keokuk’s homecoming with a razor thin 35-34 win.