ROSSVILLE (KSNT) – The Rossville Bulldogs, or ‘Dawgs’, are motivated ahead of the 2025 Class 1A football season following a disappointing end to 2024.
The Dawgs were 8-4 last season, but they were 0-3 in league play. Those three losses came in the first three games of the season, before Rossville went on to win eight straight.
They were one of the final four teams remaining in the Class 1A State Championship bracket, before losing to Centralia in the semifinals, 22-9.
Rossville is hungry to win again, its last title coming in the Class 2A Championship in 2021. The Dawgs are using last year’s shortcomings as motivation.
“We’re an approach-based team where we’re just going to approach each week the best we can and seek to improve through that week,” Derick Hammes said, Rossville football’s head coach.
His players, especially the seniors, share that motivation. They don’t just want to reach the semifinals again this year, but want to make it one step further.
“After winning a bunch of games straight and then coming to a disappointing end, it hurt but it also gives us something to drive for this season and achieve more and achieve greatness,” Rossville senior lineman, Caleb Lehman, said.
“Obviously, we fell up short,” Cannan Mitchell, Rossville’s senior quarterback and free safety, said. “We just want to get back to that, where we were last year. But we want to win that game and get to the state championship.”
The Dawgs will open up its 2025 campaign at Silver Lake on Sept. 5th at 7 p.m.
