THE METAMORA FOOTBALL TEAM FINDS ITSELF IN UNFAMILIAR SURROUNDINGS.
ONE LOSS AND A DIFFERENT CLASS FOR SATURDAY'S PLAYOFF OPENER...AND IF THAT WASN'T ENOUGH, THEY'RE OPENING AGAINST THE DEFENDING STATE CHAMPS.

Believe it or not, Pat Ryan's intensity level just went up...

"We can tell, because the coaches are more 'jacked'," said senior running back Aaron Peters. "They're ready to go. They get us ready to go. We're just out here with the same intensity as the coaches, trying to match it."

The always–intense Metamora work–outs even more fervent now that the post–season has arrived.

"We’ve got an extra practice this week, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to take it easy on any of them," said senior lineman Sean McKee. " We’ve just got to go that much harder and prepare for the playoffs because we can’t afford to slip up in the playoffs, you know, it’s one and done."

For the first time since the IHSA went to 8 classes, the Redbirds find themselves in class 4A.
Metamora went to the state title game back then in 2000...
This time around, they get the defending 4A state champs to open the playoffs. That loss to Washington has the Redbirds a bit fired–up too.

"Yeah, we’ve pulled together since the Washington game," Peters said.
"We felt like needed to prove that we can play with the same intensity all year round, not just one game."

"It was disappointing, that loss," McKee said. "A lot of people gave up on us right then, but we still feel like we have a great team, and we can make a run at the state championship."