Unity Christian ready for a clean slate, will be first team in area to kick off season

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - Two seasons ago, they were an eight man powerhouse. The LSA Lions were a ten and one team, and finished just a couple wins shy of the state title game.

But during the following offseason, the program was clouded with change.

Some changes as small as the school changing its name from LSA to Unity Christian, to a change in coach going from Jordan Hopman to Michael Harris.

"Big change last year," said junior quarterback Jaedan Jackson. "He got hired right before the season. So he came in very knew."

The team also had quite the roster overhaul.

"We had some players leave for other teams, and we understood that it was going to be a rough year," said junior linebacker Clinton Verheecke. "We understood that there was going to be a lot of change, and there was going to be a lot of things that we just couldn't control."

The Lions, a team that once dominated the Friday Night Lights, found themselves on the wrong side of the scoreboard.

"We lost a lot, we kept, you know, kept our heads up and kept fighting," said Jackson."

"Everything didn't go as planned, really," said senior running back Everett Roughton. "But I think we learned a lot, even from defeat."

"I think last year was just about learning to enjoy the sport again," said Garrett Verheecke. "You know, it's not everything's all about winning. Obviously we want to win. We're competitive and we wanna make a name for ourselves and have success, but also learning to just enjoy playing football together."

The Lions will be the first to show us what they've got because they're going to kick off their season the Thursday before the rest of Central Illinois kicks off theirs.

"It's super exciting," said Clinton Verheecke. "It's a huge opportunity to kind of set the tone for here in Central Illinois football."

"{I'm} hoping for some good turnouts and just hopefully that we can represent Macon County football," said Garrett Verheecke.

The Lions kick off their season on Thursday, Aug. 29 when they host Metro-East Lutheran. 

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