Postcards from Camp: Snohomish

SNOHOMISH – The Snohomish football team will have a new look this season.

The Panthers will wear new home and away jerseys made by Under Armour on game nights featuring their red and white colors.

With head coach Kai Smalley entering his second season, the new jerseys serve as a symbol of a program that is learning who it is under its still relatively new coach.

“(The players) are trying to establish themselves as starting new and fresh,” Smalley said. “Obviously it’s a school where everybody is proud of the tradition and the history that we have here, but right now we’re at a crucial point with a new head coach coming in and a new system starting. We’ve got to take advantage of the new system we’ve got now. We’ve got to gain an identity.”

Part of that identity for Smalley is making sure his players take pride in the school and its storied history.

“As a coaching staff, that was one of the things that we put on them in the offseason is that there’s not enough pride in being a Snohomish Panther,” Smalley said. “It’s something that you should very proud of with the tradition of the school. Maybe recently we haven’t had all the wins we want, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still be proud of where you’re at and what you’re doing. They’ve really responded to that and taken ownership of it.”

Head Coach: Kai Smalley (2^nd year)

Key Returners: Nathan Jacobson, Sr., OL/DL; Alex Fairhurst, Sr., OL/DL; Connor Browne, Sr., RB/LB; Boomer Vuori, Sr., RB/DB; Aidan Kutsch, Sr., WR/FS.

Coach’s Quote: “We’ve had a very productive offseason. Last year, I got here in July and had to throw everything together pretty quickly. This year, our seniors have really stepped up and been leaders off the field and had a great offseason. We had great camps this summer, and we’re dependent on an experienced offensive line and a running back with a lot of experience. Hopefully, we’ll be able to mesh better as a team than we did last year. Everybody is finally on the same page, where we need to be.”