2024 Turner Football-A New Era

Turner Football, for the past few years, hasn’t been going as great as we all hope. This can come from multiple different reasons, but this year will be different.  Coach Steffen is looking to change the narrative for Turner Football.  He’s attacking major issues most coaches ignored for years which makes him different from the rest.  He has made changes noticeable from day one to the present. The mood of practice has completely changed from the past. The team is more positive than in the past, the coaches care more, and the team is much bigger now. Turner Football has enough players to have a Varsity Team, a JV Team, and a Freshmen Team, this is unheard of from Turner Football. The last 4 years we barely had enough to make a JV Team which is a huge difference.

When asked about the differences between this year and last he stated “I would say the biggest difference is the way we practice, we are very fortunate to have great numbers to start the year, right around 80 players with almost 35 being freshmen. It allows us to split up our practice to make sure that everybody is getting crucial reps and individual work time.”

Coach Steffen calls our football team “Team 91”. When asked why, he replied “Team91 is who we are. We are the 91st team in Turner history. When we put on our jerseys and take the field on Friday nights, we represent not only the future but the past 90 teams that wore the Turner Logo. It unites us with every single athlete that has played football here at Turner High School.”

The upcoming schedule this year is going to be tough, with the season opener game against Lansing who beat us last year 86-6. The next tough opponent is De Soto who went 8-2 last year and beat us two times last year. The next opponent is Leavenworth, a very winnable game but it won’t be easy. The next opponent is Topeka Seaman who went far in the playoffs last year, ultimately losing to Mill Valley. The next opponent is KIPP Academy which is our Homecoming game and is very winnable. The next opponent is Topeka West, a very winnable game that is highlighted on our schedule as a revenge game. The next opponent is Piper, which is winnable but will be a very tough game to win. The last opponent we play is Shawnee Heights which is going to be a very hard game to play due to them going 8-3 last year.

Coach Steffen touched upon the schedule which he replied “We prepare to win every single game. As coaches, we spend a lot of time outside of practice preparing for each and every opponent to come up with the best chance to win football games. From watching film to preparing game plans, our goal is always to win and compete with the best teams in our league”

When asked about our biggest weakness he stated “We still struggle with communication and transportation. Our goal is to get every kid to practice every single day. Our athletes take on so many other responsibilities for their families that it makes it difficult so consistently see kids. Being at practice every day is how we improve and get better. We have the opportunity to add a 9-game freshmen schedule this year which gives us even more opportunities to get better.”  When asked about our biggest strength he said “We have a heavy senior-led team with 14 athletes. That will provide us with a lot more depth and experience than we have had in the past.”

Coach Steffen talked about his favorite memory from this season, which he stated “Seeing how committed our guys have been throughout the summer and start of the season. Our coaching staff feels like the kids have really enjoyed practice and are having fun.”

Team 91 has a bright future with Coach Steffen at the helm. Coach Steffen is looking to turn Turner back into a contender like they were many years ago. With the help of future stars and returning star players on Team 91, it looks like Turner Golden Bears Football being a contender may come sooner rather than later.