The 49th celebration on the tour arrived! MaxPreps and the Army National Guard made a stop in Highlands Ranch, Colorado to pay tribute to the Eagles of the Valor Christian High School Varsity Football team. This truly amazing team earned the honor by clinching the Colorado Class 4A state football championship with a 14-0 undefeated season and was ranked No. 35 in the nation by the MaxPreps Freeman poll.
The 7th Annual MaxPreps Football Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard arrived at Valor on the morning of Friday March 2, 2012. As we entered the impressive Athletic building, it was obvious that this was not your ordinary school. The Starbucks style café outside the gymnasium entrance was filled with students mingling with one another over books and beverages. What had the potential to be a noisy mad house was anything but that. "Just chillin'" is all I can say to describe the vibe from these teens. Impressed by the scene, Master Sergeant Tansea Boland from the Colorado Army National Guard and I were greeted by Valor Athletic Director, Brian Kula and Head Football coach, Brent Vieselmeyer who both expressed their thanks for the recognition. Shortly after we began to set up, MaxPreps representative, Gerry Valerio arrived and shared his enthusiasm over Valor's incredible season with the coaches and Army National Guard.
At 9:30am the students began to fill the gymnasium. The Army National Guard engaged the crowd by throwing t-shirts and stress balls into the stands. Athletic Director, Brian Kula, took the microphone to center court and welcomed the students to this special pep rally to honor the Eagle football players. The lights were dimmed and a special season highlights video began to play on the large screen overhead. As the crowd's cheers died down after the end of the video, Brian Kula introduced Gerry Valerio of MaxPreps and turned the microphone over. Gerry quickly got to the point as to why the team was being honored, citing their incredible undefeated season, their 24 game winning streaks and their impressive No. 35 national ranking out of 16,000 high schools by MaxPreps. Gerry then introduced Sergeant Wright from the Colorado Army National Guard. SGT Wright called the Eagle football team onto the court for some well-deserved recognition from the crowd. After commending the team for their determination, dedication and perseverance during this season, he presented the team and Head Coach Vieselmeyer with the Army National Guard national ranking trophy, commonly referred to as the "Minuteman" trophy. Coach Vieselmeyer and his team graciously accepted amidst the thunderous applause from the crowd.
Congratulations to the Eagles for an amazing season!
