Gaming culture has skyrocketed throughout the years, becoming more socially acceptable; so much so, that we have competitions for certain games. Four years ago, Jenks’ Esports began as just a club with nothing. Now, they have won state championships and are in the top 25 in the country. Though Esports doesn’t get its recognition, they work hard to get where they are now. Having recently been deemed a “sport” by the Oklahoma Secondary School Athletic Association (OSSAA), the team reached the top 25 in PlayVS –  the national Esports competition for multiple games – with an 87.50% winning match, securing spot 17. 

The Olympics, the World renowned international sporting event featuring athletes from hundreds of countries. It would be safe to say that everyone has heard of the Olympics and has watched at least one event in their lifetime. But did you know there is also an Olympic competition for those with intellectual and physical disabilities?

A majority of the Jenks community is able to say they’ve found themselves at a Friday Night Lights game sometime throughout the years. They‘ll walk through the gate, find their seat on the bleachers, and watch a game of football like millions of other schools are doing on that very same night. If they go to a game this year they may see something new. All of a sudden the opposing team is on third down and a song starts playing from the speakers. Cheer and Pom girls are on the sidelines holding signs and chanting, desperately trying to get the crowd to participate. 

With a rough start to the season, Jenks is currently 1-2 just recently suffering a tough 9-3 loss to Union. Heading into Bixby in a must-win game early in the season, this might be a test for Jenks as they dropped two games in a row to Union and Owasso. The future of the season is uncertain for Jenks.

While summer is coming to an end and pools are turning cold, the pool at the Jenks Trojan Aquatic Center is starting to heat up with many swimmers training for this upcoming season. This is where Senior Alexis Selden is staying busy motivating her teammates to return to gold.

Known as America’s favorite pastime, baseball is the pinnacle of sports with over 162 games a season. High school baseball is the same, but just with 25 to 40 games (brucebolt.us) and with a little more youth.

Football time in Oklahoma is a sacred season. Students and families gather at Allan Trimble under the bright stadium lights, ready to crush the opposing team of the evening. There really isn’t much else you could ask for. Except…a rivalry game. When the mood and the stakes are intensified beyond measure. When every second counts on the field. When one mess up could cost you the game. Everything matters during rivalry games. Imagine playing all three “rivals” within a one-month period. Owasso, Union and Bixby all in September. That’s exactly what the Jenks High School Football team is about to endure. 

The College Football landscape has been tossed, turned, and flipped upside down since the beginning of the season in August. Preseason playoff hopefuls such as Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Michigan State, find themselves unranked four months later, only to be replaced by surprises of the season such as Washington, Kansas State, and LSU. However, the previous three teams mentioned are out in terms of a shot at the College Football playoff. As an avid watcher of football for the past decade, I have culminated a deeper level of understanding for the game. In this article, I’m going to be analyzing and predicting the current ranked Top 6 Teams leading up to the College Football Playoff.

As the regular season of college football slowly comes to an end, one of the most important and highly anticipated events of the year ramps up. Transfer Portal Season. A time where players can enter their name in hopes of transferring to a new college football team. Whether a favorite player of yours enters the portal or not, there is always something happening that leaves the football community shocked. From a player switching to a rival team or entering the portal as a walk-on, there’s never a dull moment. As I take you along on brief descriptions and portal information on each player, I hope you create your own opinions and gain new knowledge/perspectives on what all comes out of the transfer portal process.

In a true attempt of Crystal tries her Best, I tried playing esports. I was allowed to play with the varsity Overwatch team.

Overwatch 2 is a popular multiplayer, that is a first person shooting (FPS) game. You pick a character and go into the game playing with four other people and go against another group of five.

The crack of a bone, the tear of a muscle, the collision of two heads against each other. The world spins around and around until you crash against a rough surface, feeling the ache spreading through your body. You scream out in agony, clutching onto the wound, trying to ease the pain that shakes you violently to your core.

In track and field, legends are created through dedication, perseverance, and an overall love for the sport. For Jenks High School's head track and cross-country coach, Joe Dial, this journey began with a humble yet remarkable start a broken pole that led to breaking records.

Communication is the key in any team dynamic, any given ball game will have the occasional “BALL,” “MINE,” or “I’M OPEN.” But have you ever thought about playing a sport where there's a constant language barrier? Well, welcome to the world of livestock showing. From a 1,000 pound cow to a 100 pound miniature lamb, the members of the Jenks livestock show team become knowledgeable in caring for various species of animals during their show season.

Resting and healing is an essential part of the recovery process upon getting injured or hurt during a game. Jenks football players don’t always get the luxury of doing so. Most times, a week is all that is provided for their bodies to reset to 100%. Difficult or not, they continue this routine every week for five months straight.

The Jenks Trojan football program has won 18 state championships, 37 district titles, and has made an outstanding 29 state championship appearances. One of the greatest and legendary high school football programs in the nation, the Jenks Trojans have cemented their place in high school football history, all while living by their long-time motto: tradition, pride, excellence.

Jenks’ athletic programs have a rather successful history, and one of the contributors to that is our leaders. Keep reading for a breakdown of Four Styles of Leadership from Our Captains.

The runners are lined up, waiting for the signal to start. Among the many runners stands Santiago Pereira, a sophomore at Jenks High School. His bib pinned to his shirt, he stands poised to outrun his competition.

When you first walk into this particular classroom, you are immediately met with the kind of energy that is rarely found within the walls of a Freshman Academy. Surveying the room, her desk was huddled in the right, bottom corner. The lights were off, only leaving the delicate glow of a multi-colored desk lamp. Around her personal area lay what you would normally find on a school teacher's desk, but what stands out the most is not what was on the desk, but what was on the walls surrounding it. There were several senior graduation announcement cards from players and students, as well as past girls basketball senior posters—the most recent, decorated with hand-written personal notes from each player under their pictures—almost as if displaying with it signs of relationship and community.

11-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps opts for a 10,000 calorie diet to ensure his success in swimming. Simone Biles fought for 10,000 hours of practice before even stepping into the Olympic arena. To get there, they had to start somewhere—high school sports. Jenks Public School produces some of the most dedicated student athletes, but what makes them so good at what they do? I talked to a handful of JPS’s best athletes to see how the content of their bags contributed to their success.

This past Friday, our Jenks Varsity Pom (JVP) team competed at the OSSAA State Gameday Championship, hosted at Moore High School. OSSAA stands for Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association, almost all of Jenks sports are defined as OSSAA sports and compete at OSSAA competitions. Pom was recently added to this state competition under the Gameday division. “Gameday” is a style of Pom dance that you usually see on the sidelines of a football game or a halftime show. This routine is formed of a school's fight song, a sideline dance (something short and entertaining), and a halftime routine (as previously mentioned what would be performed at games and at halftime, usually something fun, full of school spirit). Gameday is dazzled up with tall flags showing a team mascot or school letters, chants, and signs.