By Taylor Hauser-
Some teams bond over dinner, but the Mount Vernon football team finds unity through their hair.
After practices this week junior Chase Younggreen has been cutting his teammates’ hair into a mohawk, a hairstyle where the sides of the head are shaved, leaving a strip of hair down the middle. Younggreen estimates he has shaved around 15 of the players heads with an electric razor.
They cut their hair for their game this Friday against Solon. “It really gets people pumped up,” said junior Carson Kuntz about the new do’s. Many of the team members agree that the stripe of hair on their heads is representative of team unity. Around half of the players have a mohawk for the game.
The boys not only like what the mohawks represent, but they actually like having the hairstyle. “I love it,” said senior Logan Walker. “It’s a good presence,” said Jake Muller, a senior.
Their parents aren’t necessarily fans of the new hair. “My dad told me I look silly,” said senior Kyle Durgin of his dad’s first reaction to his haircut.
“My mom didn’t like it, but she’ll have to get over it,” said Muller.
As for those who don’t have Mohawks, some feel the pressure to get one, others don’t. Mitchel Jilovec, a senior, tried to have his hair cut into a mohawk, but he eventually shaved it off. Senior Joe Liberko said he felt no pressure to get a mohawk and was opting out of getting his hair cut because he is getting his senior pictures taken soon.
Last year the team also had mohawks for the Solon game. Do the two have a correlation? Some say yes, others say no. “That’s what we do during Solon week,” said senior Drake Kroeger, but Muller disagrees. “It’s a new team and a new year,” he said.
With or without the mohawks, the Mustangs have big hopes for their rivalry game against the Spartans. “It will be the hardest thing I ever do, but I expect to win,” said Walker.
Junior Keanan Shannon hopes to “beat them on their new field.” Regardless, players are hoping for a Mustang victory. How do they plan to do so? “Our go-to stuff,” said senior Kyle Durgin. As for any new plays or strategies against Solon? “We don’t want to give away secrets,” said Muller.
