The weather may not feel like it, but it is officially football season.  

After a week of blistering 100+ degree heat, the Windsor football team kicked off their season on Friday against Herculaneum.  Due to the heat, the kickoff was pushed back an hour. After losing 42-6 to the Blackcats last season, the Owls avenged that loss with a 7-6 victory on Friday. 

Head coach Jeff Funston is running a new offense this season. 

Funston said, “We have implemented an entirely new offense. We are becoming a more disciplined team. The way we approach practice, the way we approach games, the way we approach down and distance, the way we approach penalties and all that.” 

While the offense stalled in the red zone several times on Friday, the defense played an exceptional game, giving up only 64 yards of total offense. 

“The defense  flew around the football field and only allowed 60 yards of offense from our opponent. I thought that it was a very good performance from our defense. We ran well, we tackled well, we played our responsibilities well,” Funston said. 

Junior Luke Patterson is the team’s starting quarterback this season. While the offense struggled at times, Patterson scored the team’s lone touchdown late in the game to give the Owls the victory. 

 “I was nervous at first, but we got the job done so it wasn’t that bad,” Patterson said. “It’s my first high school touchdown, and I havent scored in 3 years.” 

For the game, the Owls rushed for over 200 yards. 

Patterson said the Owls can make some adjustments before their game this week. 

“The penalties–we had a lot of flags, they really killed us. They called back two touchdowns, but I mean if we fix those we should be good,” Patterson said. 

  On Friday, the Owls head to Perryville. Last season, the Owls beat the Pirates 28-7. The Owls are hopeful that they can start 2-0.

“If we cut out penalties and play hard, we should be fine,” Patterson said.