THE PRAIRIE NEWS3710 S. Jefferson, Springfield, Missouri 65807 Online @ PNToday.com Tuesday December 21, 2010 Vol. 40 Issue 4

Even though students have 39 less spots to park, they are now able to cross Jefferson in a safer manner. The sudden additions to Jefferson Avenue have created an easier and less stress-filled environment for students making them able to enter the school building from the west side of Jefferson. The City Traffic Engineering Department of Springfield met with Hunter Chase and associates, the R-12 faculty, and Kickapoo Administration to discuss solutions for Jefferson about the congestion caused during the school week. The administration and city traffic engineering department came to the conclusion, with

the help of Hunter Chase and Associates, to make several additions in which would help create a safer way for students to enter the parking lot. “[It was] not a big priority, just a solution to a problem that we could fix at the time,” Co-Interim City Traffic Engineer, Martin Gugel said. The construction project was under contract and happened more quickly than expected. The time and resources were available, and the construction company was concerned about completing the project over the holiday break due to the possibility of drastic changes in the weather. “It’s a lot safer now. Instead of having students dodging in

west side of the street now left to park in an area with less than one third of the space on the east side of Jefferson, near the practice football field. As most students noticed, a majority of the construction happened during the day while students were in school. “[We] tried to do the construction during the day to make less of a “fuss” to not disrupt the general public,” Gugel said. Workers did this in order to make the construction as little of a problem and disruption to the students and administration as possible.

and out, between the cars they have a specific place to cross the street, and they have signs which tell drivers to really pay attention to pedestrians in this certain area,” School Police Officer Ramon Seeley. The additions helped to make it safer for both students and drivers. The center median, the center turn lane, the crosswalk, and the signs indicating the cross walk were some of the many additions added by The City Traffic Engineering Department of Springfield. Due to the additions made to Jefferson up to 39 parking spaces were eliminated, making the students who would usual park on the

From left to right: senior Amanda Golden, sophomore Aaron Moore, freshman Andrew Ramsey, and junior Julia Rhodes. “It’s a lot safer now,” Seeley said. “They have a specific place to cross the street.”

Jefferson’s lane improvements aim to lessen traffic congestion story and photo by Emily Cowan

Mike Butcher (left) helps take part in surprising wife and English teacher Deana Butcher by bringing in roses for her birthday, before she was presented with the Springfield Public Schools Starcatcher Award by nominator Principal Dave Schmitz and SPS Superintendent Dr. Norm Ridder.

Mrs. Butcher nominated and selected as 2010 SPS Starcather recepient

26. That’s how many feet (lengthwise)of space fans lost in a domino effect that moved the student section to the west side of the gym. It was a safety hazard according to Athletic Director Brandon Clark, that led to other issues such as less referee walking space, room in the coach’s box, and media workspace that eventually caused the student section to be moved. The Missouri State High School Activities Association rules state, “The student sections shall be placed in locations that minimize the obstruction of other patrons when the students stand in unison.” “Several factors, including overall safety issues with our building being 40 years old led to the domino effect.” Clark said.Fans say they first found out about the move from members of the basketball team, but they weren’t aware of where the new location would be. “I heard about it a couple days before the game from some of the basketball guys because they knew the team benches were moving, but they didn’t say anything about where we were going to be,” senior Patrick Nace said.

choosing the right time to release the information. “If we were not ready to make the change and would have told students it was ‘in the works’ it would have created a hornet’s nest; we have to be very strategic about releasing information,” Clark said. New chains and a sign have arrived and the student section is clearly marked at each home game. “I think if people knew why they moved them it wouldn’t have been an issue.” Nace said, “Any sign that they are working with us is progress because they have never done that before.” While a gap in effective communication between students and administrators may have caused tension during one game, Clark wants to make sure students understand that the changes were made as the result of a domino effect, not to punish students.“The purpose was not to change student seating or limit them in anyway, there was a domino affect that resulted from a change needed for safety; I don’t want them to think this was to hurt them, if I didn’t care about them I would have made the decision two months ago,” Clark said.

or place to have these types of discussions, they are discussions we want to have but the students that night did not choose the most effective time,” Clark said. Some of the fans claimed that administrators weren’t giving clear answers. “We never really got a clear answer and he kinda danced around the issue the whole night,” senior Connor Capps said. Students were eventually allowed to stand in the rest of Section D after the administration reviewed how much visibility would be lost by the section. “I assessed how much of a management issue it would be as well as how much of the line of sight would be lost. Mr. Schmitz and I felt that we could deal with it at the time and did let them stand after the first quarter,” Clark said. Students involved in conversations that night found it confusing that they were told by administrators they were not going to be allowed to stand in that area, only to later be told that they could then stand. “It was our plan all along to let them stand there, we just had to wait until Mr. Clark could evaluate the situation,” Principal Dave Schmitz said. Looking back on the evening Clark feels it was also a matter of

Administration said there was an ongoing plan to communicate the change with students, however it could have been done more effectively. “We put a notice out in Chief Chatter about the move to section E and also had met with student council on how to communicate the changes with students. However I will admit that Chief Chatter may have not been the most effective manner,” Clark said. At the December 3 Tip-off Classic, students decided to approach Principal Dave Schmitz about why the changes had occurred and find a solution. “We went up to him very calmly and asked why we couldn’t stand in our other section,” senior Dillon Steele said. Schmitz then moved that conversation to the hallway. “It wasn’t a private issue, we wanted it to be an open discussion, I think the administration just didn’t want other people to hear about it,” senior Connor Steele said. Clark thought that the way involved students communicated at the game was not as effective. “Right before the start of a big tournament is probably not the best time

Story and photo by Chase Snider Contributing reporter: Courtney Hamiliton

photo by Chase Snider

For full video and continuing coverage log on to PNToday.com

6 - Varsity basketball’s record at press time. >>>Get all the scores from the William Jewell Classicby texting PNMEDIA to 41411

21^^Number of Chief Times adopting holiday families this year as part of Key Club’s annual program. See a full story coming up online @ PNToday.com

83 <<< Blankets made by Pay It Forward for Isabel’s House, a safe haven for kids 12 and under when their home l ives are in a cr is is s i tuat ion, including drugs, abuse, loss of home, and much more

Amount over the course of two months that Amnesty International

has raised for Invis ible Chi ldren’s Schools for Schools program. >>> $5223.53graphics by MCT Campus

Taking a look at the #’scompiled by PN Media Staff

2 Opinion December 21, 2010Text PNMEDIA to 41411

Opinion Ramblings of an insomniac 11 things

Holiday frustrationsby Ashley Dun

Recently my doctor informed me that I was, in fact, an eighty year old woman, and required a second surgery on my right hip. I’m sixteen. I get to endure a few months of my senior year in a wheelchair, slowly graduating to crutches, a walker (I clearly need grandchildren), and eventually a cane if deemed necessary. So naturally, I’m stoked as I think about all the fun activities I can do while temporarily handicapped. The wheelchair I rented after my first hip surgery last December had no way of self propelling so my brother unfortunately pushed me most places. As he was pushing me out to his car he decided it would be a wonderful idea to stop pushing me in the middle of Jefferson and walk away leaving me unattended and immobile in the middle of a busy street. Lucky for me, a driver got out of their vehicle and pushed me onto the side walk while my brother stood by and watched. Needless to say, I got the one with the big wheels this time. The first week I was deemed eligible to leave my house, I ended up going to a church called The Table, located on Commercial Street. This was of course the week we had to do a lot of standing and moving around including communion. This is where I really got the first taste of how extremely awkward normal tasks are when I am stuck in a wheelchair. Afterwards, my friend had his longboard in the trunk, so naturally we decided to race down the slightly slanted Commercial street. I unfortunately lost, but luckily a heroin needle did not get caught in my wheel and I rolled away unscathed. This, unfortunately was the only fun activity I got to participate in thus far.

Now school, however, is quite a different story. First, I’ve had to acquire an elevator pass from the nurse. I found this odd since I was in a wheelchair. I highly doubt any faculty member would question my use of the elevator. After this I started rolling to my morning rendezvous spot with my friends. As soon as I rolled up, senior Alex Harris yelled, “Quick, everyone turn away. She is handicapped.” I was immediately shunned from my usual group of friends. After some coaxing, they eventually turned back around including me into the circle. The five minute bell rang and I started rolling towards the elevator. Along the way I noticed there are two kinds of people at this school. The first kind stares at me relentlessly like I have three eyes and are kicking a baby. The other kind completely avoids all eye contact and basically acts as if I am not there. My least favorite part about being in a wheelchair at school is having to be at everyone’s crotch level all day. As I moved on to my first class, I was ostracized. Since I could not make it to my normal seat, I was forced to sit a on the end far away from everyone else. Eventually some friends were allowed to move closer with helped a bit. Near the end of class, the teacher had a game planned where the class separated into two teams. When an English word was called out people ran to the board and slapped the Spanish equivalent. Obviously I was not allowed to participate in this game. I kept score. All throughout the day I was greeted with rude nicknames, ostracized, and neglected. Junior Ainsley Acuff responded to seeing me by pointing and laughing as she walked away. Even my own parents shun me in public. My dad and I went out to eat. I tripped on the curb. The rest of the meal my father tried to pretend as if he did not know me when people where around. What I thought would be a fun filled and exciting new experience turned out to irreversibly lower my self-esteem. The only good news is that I am no longer an insomniac. Now I just cry myself to sleep every night. Just kidding. I am totally kidding.

by Kate Hundley

Photo courtesy of Katie Day Photography

Students are unjustly confined in schoolby Mike Baker

Students are treated like prisoners in an environment that is supposed to encourage thought, free will and learning. School systems in this country are actually going in the opposite direction by sacrificing education for safety. In September of 1998, The Department of Education in New York City transferred all responsibility regarding student safety to the New York Police

Department. The NYPD was to take over as school security officers and officials. Seems like a smart move right? While it might have helped keep students “safer”, that decision forfeited the students time in a classroom in order to do searches, mandating all students to pass through a metal detector and even banning cell phones completely from school grounds. This preposterous decision by the Department of Education and the uncalled for actions by the NYPD show just how little the DOE care about our education. I for one am able to do my school work better and faster if I am wanting to leave the school. Here at Kickapoo, we are all herded around during the day and expected to follow along without so much as a bad thought

about it. During lunch they even go so far as to put up gates in order to aid in this herding. This is ridiculous and absolutely demeaning to me as a person. So what? Just because I can’t vote and own my own house I’m not a person? Does my voice not matter? Why is it that the district expects us to all follow this ridiculous treatment and be ok with this? I for one am fed up with this. Not just the herding, but almost everything else that goes on during the school day regarding the students. This needs to end. We need to feel as though we are free to be open during our time at school. If there are others out there who are as against this as I am, we need to begin protesting our dislike. Voice your concern with your teachers, administrators and

even other students. People need to know that this is an issue with us and we do not like it anymore. Why can’t we leave during lunch and Chief Time? Why must we always have a teacher watch us? Why must teachers harass us if we are randomly wandering the hallways? We are all people. We have individual thoughts, emotions and ideas. Biologically and in

some cases physiologically, we as students and adults who get to vote and live alone are the exact same. We are all people and deserve to have our voices heard at work, school or anywhere we have an issue with. That is our constitutional right as American citizens.

Photo by Ashley Dun

Confessions of a wheelchair-bound student

TextPNMEDIA To41411 for the latest News Updates

In exchange for “security,” students are treated like imprisoned animals. Photo by Mike Baker.

She is totally just kidding. Photo by Ashley Dun.

Not to be a Scrooge, but there are a select few things about the Holiday season that irk me. The Prairie News Staff and I have dramatized these situations for your viewing pleasure:

11) Christmas music played three weeks before December even starts

November 4, 2010Chase: *turns on radio*Radio: It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas...Chase: D:<

10) Writing cards to people you might not necessarily know very well

Dear Person Who Lives Next Door,During the 365 days of each year, I probably talk to you a total of five times.I’m not really even sure what your last name is.However, due to these accursed unwritten rules of etiquette, I am compelled to write you this card. So. Merry Christmas! Unless you’re like Jewish or something.Sincerely,

Your Neighbor.Nick Kessler is not amused.

9) The pressure to buy the perfect gift Courtney: Just get him a gift card. Ashley: That’s so unoriginal.I’m trying to choose between the Twilight Box Set and a book of Miley Cyrus’s memoirs.Courtney: Um.Ashley: Ed Hardy cologne sounds

nice too!

7) Fruitcake

Self-explanatory.Photo courtesy of MCT Campus.

5) Stale TV SpecialsAshley: Hey Kate, do you want to watch A Christmas Carol with me on ABC Family?Kate: I can’t. I’ve seen that movie so much that the last time I watched it I was driven insane with rage and ritually sacrificed a small child.Ashley: Nice.Kate: It made me feel good.

4) Close-minded people who think charities that use the holidays to garner aid for the disadvantaged are “corrupt”Cody: Hey Ashley, do you have any spare change to donate to this children’s orphanage? We’re trying to raise enough money to-Ashley: What have children ever done for me? I’m not giving any of my hard-earned cash to stupid, lazy bums that are milking the system. ALL POOR PEOPLE DESERVE TO STARVE AND DIE

ALONE IN MISERY.Cody: Sigh.

3) Aggressive ShoppersSpencer Price, a mild-mannered everyday citizen, was just casually browsing the aisles at Wal-Mart a few days before Christmas when he was viciously ambushed by Clayton Allison.Price desperately clutched onto his item, a toy kitty, while Allison proceeded to mercilessly beat him con-tinuously with a Play Skool lawn mower. Price narrowly escaped on a toy tricycle. Just another example of…

WHEN SHOPPERS ATTACK

2) People who are offended by the phrase “Merry Christmas”Allie: Merry Christmas, friend!Ashley: How dare you? Did it ever occur to you that not every person on earth is a Christian? Stop trying to shove the Gospel down my throat, you ignorant jerk. Allie: Oh, sorry. I forgot that your religious values strictly consisted of being an arrogant jack— Ashley: Uh, I’m actually an Atheist and don’t practice a religion, because doing so would imply that I have no free will and am incapable of thinking for myself. You really need to be a little more sensitive to other

people.

8) Not seeing SPS on the morning list of “schools that will not be in session” after an overnight snow I hope the SPS District knows that for every potential snow day they take away from us, a baby seal dies.

6) People who make the holiday season overly religious

Emily: Hey, I got you a Christmas present!Ashley: Aren’t you a Muslim?Emily: Yeah, but I just thought it’d be nice—Emily: I can’t accept this. You’re not a Christian, so you don’t get to enjoy this holiday because it would be wrong. Burn in hell, you filthy heathen. But remember, Jesus loves you.Emily: :(

1) The Countdown to Winter Break

Thank goodness it’s almost over.As you suffer through the next day, just know that the Prairie News Staff wishes you a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holiday, Winter Solstice, Obscure Pagan Festival, or whatever the heck you choose to celebrate during this time of year. Hey. We tried to be politically correct.

All photos courtesy of the extremely hot Prairie News staff

Image courtesy of MCT Campus.

3OpinionDecember 21, 2010 PNToday.com

Next Month’s Releases Worst Secret Santa Gift?

Just Touchin’ BaseStudents should open their minds to nationwide college options by Chase Snider

It’s begun. Actually, it began about 18 months ago - the mass marketing that hundreds of colleges push on millions of high schoolers. It all starts when students check that little box on the ACT that says it’s ok to let colleges contact them directly. It begins innocently enough, one or two postcards a week popping up in the mail. Then it begins to increase; e-mails start to fill your inbox with reminders of deadlines and campus visits, and finally it turns into a full out flood of packets and brochures. Students feel an overwhelming push from many people, parents being a big catalyst, to stay local. But why? Don’t go to a school solely because of location. Yes it plays a role, but it is far more important to go some where because it will provide you with the education you need. Part of the experience of going to college is to get out of your comfort zone and experience new things. So many students from Springfield Public Schools enroll at Missouri State University or Drury University because they feel this signifies a real accomplishment in their scholastic careers. While there are nothing wrong with these colleges, I feel that a lot of students could be going to universities across the country that they are not even looking at. Financial obligations can also be a burden for many students. As someone not from an extremely affluent family, I understand how cost plays into decisions. However after applying to institutions such as Harvard, I have learned that there are a lot of resources available.

The Kickapoo counseling center puts out a monthly bulletin with over 40 scholarships that students may apply for. Also, some institutions offer what is known as Need Blind acceptance, meaning that if you are accepted the college will work with your family to assure you can attend based off your estimated family contribution and any scholarships you may receive. Your best bet is to contact colleges you may be interested in early on so you find out all of the opinions available. Finally, a program known as QuestBridge, grants scholarships for students of financial need to be able to visit east coast and Ivy League colleges. This allows students to see firsthand what kind of experiences they would be getting, in addition to allowing them to talk face to face with college representatives to learn about plans for those in financial need. My advice would be for any student looking to their post Kickapoo education is to not be limited by where you live. David Awbrey, a journalist said a friend who was an admissions officer at an Ivy League college recently talked about how a student from Springfield, Missouri often has more of a chance be the “bible belt kid”, or the kid from the rural area, because they offer a unique demographic for the school that many prep or private colleges in big cities can not offer. Finally, I think it is very important students get out of Springfield, Missouri and experience big city, urban life. How many students could survive riding the bus day to day and end up to work/school on time? What is it like living for months at a time in a culture where you are a minority, or people may not even speak the same language as you. Kickapoo pats itself on the back for “preparing students for a global society”, but what good does all that so called “preparation” do if they neglect to take theta opportunity. Never feel obligated to go somewhere because you feel like your limited by location or you’re feeling pressure to not leave home.

Photo by PN Media

by Ashley Dun

JANUARY

Prairie News Publication PolicyPublication Policy

The Kickapoo Prairie News operates as an open forum and intends to inform students, teachers, administrators, and other citizens of the community of the school and publish news on the basis of news value. The Prairie News, printed by Kickapoo High Schol, the District of Springfield, MO, is issued monthly during the school year. Students and faculty receive a free copy of each edition.

Editorial Policies

This publication reserves the right to edit all letters and quotes to insure that they contain no libelous material and no vulgarities. All letters submitted must be signed by the author, but names may be witheld upon request. Letters will be edited for grammatical errors. A chance for fair reply will be granted if necessary. The need for reply will be determined by the editorial staff. Letters may be dropped into locker 2001. Opinions presented on music albums, movies, the theater presentations, books, television programs, art work, etc. represent the opinion of the writer only and not necessarily that of the Prairie News, or Kickapoo High School. Likewise, all material in columns is the opinion of the columnist.

Errors

This publication strives for fairness and accuracy. The Editorial Board will print a correction in the following issue if it is determined necessary. Comments or questions may be directed to: Editorial Board, KHS Prairie News, and placed in locker 2001 outside of room 201, emailed to news@pntoday.com, or you may contact Mrs. Leslie Orman, adviser, at 523-8781.

Business Manager: Jon HearnPollster: Emily Cowan

Staff Reporters: Mike Baker, Nick Kessler, Cody Carroll, C.J. TiceColumnist: Kate Hundley

Adviser: Leslie OrmanPrincipal: Dave Schmitz

Editor-in-Chief: Chase Snider News Editor: Courtney Hamilton

Feature Editor: Allie Kane

Opinion Editor: Ashley Dun

Sports Editors: Spencer Price and Alex Brown

The Staff

Our Apologies....The Prairie News Staff would like to apologize for the following errors:

In the November article: “Schools For Schools competition is making a difference in the international community,” Mrs. Nancy Bright-Kaufman was misquoted.

Columnist Kate Hundley was not listed in the Staff Box.

Pollster Emily Cowan was not credited for her poll “Most Disturbing Thing to See During the Holidays?”

Our staff is sorry if they offended the respective persons; our publication strives to be as accurate and factual as possible when informing its readers. Please send corrections to news@pntoday.com or put them in Locker 2001.

Jan. 14

Jan. 21

Jan. 18 Jan. 25

The Green HornetNew Movie

Seth Rogen/Jay Chou

New Album

Some Kind of TroubleJames Blunt

New Movie

Ashton Kutcher/Natalie Portman

No Strings Attached

Usually when one thinks of wings, two places in Springfield come to mind: Buffalo Wild Wings a.k.a “Bdubs” and Wingstop. There are numerous pros and cons to both of these fine establishments, and we are here to help shed light on which place you should spend your parents’ money.

Buffalo Wild Wings

 

V.S.Wing Stop

900 E Battlefield 303 E Battlefield

PROS CONS PROS CONS

Forks and KnivesSpencer Price andClayton Allison give you the stats of the best wing places in town

- Short drive from school

-Sports bar atmosphere that serves as a great social gathering

-Lots and lots of TVs of all differ-ent sizes.

-Depending on what night you go, you will normally receive a table in a reasonable fashion

- While the fries cannot be compared to Wing Stop’s, they have Buffalo Chips with Cheese

-You have to pretty much yell to hear each other because there are almost always a lot of people there

-Everything is sold seperately, so it can get a little pricey

-Drunken idiots still wearing Tim Tebow jerseys on Saturdays watching College Gameday.

-Cheap. Ten wings, fries, and a drink for under $10

-A quieter environment makes for a more laid back and casual atmosphere

-The food is very good, with their french fries surprisingly being a customer favorite

-Small space, not exactly ideal for a large group of people

-The service is a little disappointing, because all they do is take your order and you are required to do everything else

-In comparison to Buffalo Wild Wings, there are very few TVs

In the end both places have major selling points. If you want a better atmosphere and a place to go with friends, then go with Buffalo Wild Wings. But if you want better food at a cheaper price, then Wingstop is the right choice. Avoiding Tim Tebow imposters is also a plus.

55% Herpes Cream

18% A paper bag...for your face

14% A dirty hobo’s jacket

11% A PlungerCompiled by Emily Cowan.Based on a poll of 10% of the student body.

11 AM - 1:30 PM Mon-Sat Sun 11 AM-12 AM 11 AM - 12 AM Mon-Sun

by Spencer Price and Clayton Allison

Not too much on the list for this month. But enjoy that cut out of James Blunt.

New AlbumSocial Distortion

Hard times and nursery rHymes

Students should realize that they have choices beyond local universities. Photo Courtesy MCT Campus.

4 December 21, 2010Text PNMEDIA to 41411

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5 Sports December 21, 2010PNToday.com

Nick Kessler talks College Football > He’s taken the time to answer all of America’s questions

PrairiePanel

ALEXCLAYTONSPENCER

NICK

Oregon

Oregon

Oregon

Auburn

Duke v Butler

Evan Nolte at ToC

Favorite X-Mas Flick

Best of 2010National Champion

The Judges

Alex Spencer Clayton Nick

Just for verification, Nick is playing the numbers game on Facebook. “Hit

up my inbox fellas” -Nick Kessler

SportsTalkin’Noise?

Coming into this wres-tling season, senior Dustin Trebbe had a different view of the year compared to last year. Trebbe is a roughly 195 pound wrestler who has been put in the situation of wres-tling heavyweight this season. Trebbe was given to opportu-nity to lose weight and wrestle at 189, but chose instead to wrestle heavyweight this sea-son. Head coach Billy Buckley gave Trebbe the choice after Buckley had two heavyweights quit before the season started. The decision to place Treb-

How would you take it, if you felt single handedly responsible for destroying everything you had tried to help build? Well maybe you should ask Kyle Brotzman, Boise State’s kicker and all-time leading scorer in school and Western Athletic Conference history. Brotzman missed two late-game field goals in the November 26 game versus the Nevada Wolf Pack. The first one, a 26-yarder at the end of regulation, would have sealed a victory for the Bron-

be in the heavyweight divi-sion was also based on how Trebbe wrestled fellow team-mate senior Clayton Allison. “I basically wrestled Clay-ton for the 215 (weight class) spot and lost,” Trebbe said. After the first three meets of the year for the team, Trebbe has com-posed a cumulative 4-6 record. “Dustin has wrestled very well lately. I think he will get get better as the sea-son goes on,” Buckley said. Buckley also stated that he has had a history of coaching smaller heavyweights but that

Bringing out the big guns Senior Dustin Trebbe takes on the challege of wrestling heavyweight

With this season’s college foot-ball bowl season looming, there are many questions heading into the key BCS bowl matchups. Can TCU prove that they can play with anyone and beat a pow-erhouse Wisconsin team, a team that has scored over 70 points in a game three times this year? Do the Connecticut Huskies stand a chance against the Big 12 Champion Oklahoma Soon-ers in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl? And who will win the BCS National Championship game between Cam Newton and the Auburn Tigers and LaMichael James and the Oregon Ducks? The Auburn Tigers and Oregon Ducks have had nothing but ex-traordinary years on the offen-sive side of the ball. The SEC Champion Auburn Tigers are the number one team in the country with a 13-0 re-cord. Heisman winner and Auburn quarterback Cam Newton, has proven that he was worthy of winning the Heisman Trophy. Newton was the first player in SEC history to rush for over 1,000 yards (1,409) and pass for over 2000 yards (2,589). Along with Newton’s im-pressive yardage, Newton has scored a combined 49 touchdowns (20 rushing, 28 passing, and one receiving). However, Newton is not the only reason for Auburn’s success. Auburn averaged 42.7 points per game this year, which was sixth in the nation. Auburn was able to do this not just behind New-ton, but also behind running backs Michael Dyer and Ontero McCalebb who combined for 1,713 rushing yards, and 14 rushing touchdowns. Receivers Darvin Adams and Emory Blake tied for the team lead in receiv-ing touchdowns with seven a piece. Auburn is the favorite to win the BCS National Champi-onship, but with their explosive offense, comes a defense that is less than impressive and is their main weakness heading into their game against Oregon. The Oregon Ducks have an of-fensive that is just as dominant as Auburn’s. Led by Heisman finalist LaMichael James and quarterback Daren Thomas, the Oregon Ducks are first in the Na-tion in points scored with 589. James is the Nation’s leading rusher with 1,682 rushing yards. James is also first in the nation in rushing touchdowns with 21. Daren Thomas has put up very impressive numbers at quarter-back. Thomas has thrown 28 passing touchdowns and for 2,518 passing yards and has ran in five touchdowns. Receiver Jeffery Maehl has a caught 12 touchdowns along with 943 re-ceiving yards. Chip Kelly and the Oregon Ducks have been one of the more dominant teams in the country, scoring an aver-age of 49.3 points per game.

Oregon has a solid defense that has only allowed 18.4 points per game, however their weakness was their quality of schedule. They played in a quality Pac-10 conference, but they haven’t really played a team like Au-burn yet this year, but no mat-ter their schedule, Oregon will be ready for their shot at the National title against Auburn. The Oklahoma Sooners showed that they were able to take advantage of a down year in the Big 12 as they went 11-2 and made their way into the Fi-esta Bowl after beating Nebras-ka in the Big 12 Championship. UConn showed that they could loose four games and still make it into a BCS bowl game. UConn is a seventeen point underdog

and for good reason. They av-erage just under 27 points per game. Quarterbacks Zach Fra-zier and Cody Endres combined have thrown only ten touch-down passes. However, there is one bright spot on this UConn team, and that is running back Jordan Todman. Todman has rushed for 14 touchdowns and for 1,574 yards. In what seems to be one of the more lopsided games in recent BCS memory, the Uconn Huskies realistically only have a puncher’s chance. The Oklahoma Sooners have had little success in BCS bowl games. The Sooners are 2-5 in BCS bowl games under head coach Bob Stoops, with their last BCS win coming in 2002. However, the Sooners are prime to end their BCS draught against a weak UConn team. The Soon-er offense is lead by quarter back Landry Jones who is second in the nation with 35 passing touch-downs and second in the nation in passing yards with 4,289 passing yards. Jones is accom-panied on offense by running back Demarco Murray who has rushed for 14 touchdowns and by receiver Ryan Broyles who has caught 13 touchdowns and has over 1,000 receiving yards. With their high powered offense and a very favorable match up,

Oklahoma is set to win their first BCS game in over nine years. One of the more intriguing games is the Rose Bowl match-up between TCU and Wiscon-sin. This is TCU’s second ap-pearance in a BCS bowl game, their first being last year in a loss to Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. The TCU Horned Frogs are lead by the nation’s best de-fense which only allows 11.4 points per game. TCU also has the fourth best offense in the Na-tion lead by quarterback Andy Dalton, however some of their success is credited to playing in a weak Mountain West Confer-ence. TCU can prove that they should have been considered for a national championship ap-pearance by beating Wisconsin.

The Wisconsin Badgers have absolutely routed opponents this season. This due to there bal-anced rushing attack that features three run-ning backs that have over ten rushing touchdowns each, James White with 14, John Clay, with 13, and Montee Ball with 17. This is Wisconsin’s first Rose Bowl since 1999, a game which they won. The Badgers will have a tough time scoring against the strong TCU defense, but if they can establish their run game, they should be able to control the ball and tire out the TCU defense. The Sugar Bowl match-up features the Ohio State Buckeyes and the

Arkansas Razorbacks. The Razorbacks’ BCS hopes were all but dead earlier this season after losses to Auburn and Ala-bama, but after late wins against South Carolina and LSU, the Razorbacks have found their way into the Sugar Bowl. Ar-kansas is lead by quarterback Ryan Mallet. Mallet has thrown 30 touchdowns and has thrown for 3,592 passing yards. Mallet leads the third ranked pass of-fense in the nation. However, even with their powerful pass-ing attack, Arkansas has a de-cent running game. Running back Knile Davis has rushed for 1,183 yards and for 13 touch-downs. Arkansas is lead by one of the best quarterback’s in the nation in Ryan Mallet, who is poised to win the Razorbacks their first BCS bowl game. Ohio State had their eyes on a national championship at the beginning of the year, but after a loss to Wisconsin, those hopes were dashed. However, Jim Tressel will have the Buckeyes ready to play in the Sugar Bowl. Terrelle Pryor and the Buckeyes will take the nation’s eleventh ranked offense into New Or-leans. Pryor is one of the main reasons that the Buckeye offense has been so strong. Pryor has thrown for 25 touchdowns and

they generally have done well and believes Trebbe can do the same if he continues learning. Trebbe has had difficulty gain-ing weight for his new weight class despite eating as often and as much as he can (I’ve witnessed this guy throw down three plates of pasta every Tuesday at lunch). “I eat a lot more than usual, but then I lose it at practice,” Trebbe said. Taking a step back and review-ing his unique situation Trebbe has seen some pros, such as the fact that he is very light and quick for a heavy weight giving

has run in four more. To add to their strong offense, the Buck-eyes have a very dominant defense that only allows 13.3 points per game. If Ohio State can keep up their impressive performances on defense, they should be able to stop Ryan Mallet and the Razorbacks. The Orange Bowl game features the Virginia Tech Hokies against the Stanford Cardinals. The Hokies lost their first two games but have won 11 straight and represent the ACC in the Orange Bowl. The Hokies are lead by dual threat quarterback Tyrod Tay-lor who has thrown 23 touch-downs and has run in five. However the Hokies will have trouble facing a Stanford team that averages over 40 points per game. Stanford quarter-back, Andrew Luck, has pro-pelled the Cardinal offense with 28 touchdown passes and 3,051 passing yards. The Hokies are on a roll, but they will have a tough time trying to hold back Andrew Luck and the Stanford offense.

him the edge in getting around his opponents quicker and avoid-ing costly take downs and pins. But for every good side, there is a bad side, and in this situation it is pretty bad. “The worst part is having guys that weigh 90 more pounds than you laying on me and preventing me doing anything,” Trebbe said. Despite the usual weight dif-ferentials and the large chal-lenge in front of him, Trebbe has made the best out of his position. Buckley finished his thoughts on Trebbe by saying, “If Dustin keeps putting the work in and continues to get better, the ‘pros’ will overshadow the ‘cons’ and he will be successful as an idivid-ual and he will help our team.”

cos as time ran out. The second failed attempt would have put the Broncos ahead in overtime, and was a 29-yard try. Ne-vada went on to win the game 34-31, dealing Boise State its first defeat of the 2010 season. With those two missed field goals, Boise State lost any shot it had at playing for the BCS Na-tional Championship game. It is so crucial because the Broncos would have been the first non-au-tomatic qualifier to have a legiti-mate shot at playing for the title. In an interview with Brotz-man, according to voices.idahos-tatesman.com, “I teared up. Just the fact of what I felt I had cost the team, as far as a BCS game or whatever was going to happen down the road. That was prob-ably the most hear tbreaking thing, that I had let down my t e a m m a t e s . ” The Broncos had been build-ing almost a dynasty in the WAC and outside the traditional major conferences. Since Chris Peter-son took over as the head coach five years ago, the Broncos’ re-cord is 60-5. That is a winning percentage of .923. And accord-ing to broncosports.com they also have been the nation’s win-ningest team since 1999. Boise State entered the season as high as the #3 ranked team in the country in some preseason polls. Yet in less than 2 quarters of play

all of that was washed away and Brotzman reputation was ruined. Since missing those kicks against Nevada, Brotzman’s life has been turned upside down. There have been numer-ous Facebook pages degrad-ing Brotzman. There are pages such as, “ Kyle Brotzman sucks at life, and clutch kicks.” If you don’t like that one you can always go with the clas-sic, “Kyle Brotzman sucks.” “I was so mad when he missed those two field goals, I was screaming and throwing things at my TV. They were only like 30 yards away, if you gave me

two chances I am putting one of them through the uprights,” junior Ryan Thornhill said. With as many hate pages that have been made, there have been just as many sup-porting pages from dedicated fans. “The Bron-co Nation Loves Kyle Brotz-man,” Faeebook page has over 9000 fans on it.

People need to remember that football is a team sport, and the kicking game is merely a por-tion of an entire group effort. Kickers are already the smallest players on the field, but a publi-cized miss can make them feel downright worthless. The next time you are prepared to jump down the throat of a college stu-dent for trying to do his job, just think, how would I feel and react if one of my failures was publi-cized for the entire world to see?

by Alex Brown

by Nick Kessler

Is it all Kyle Brotzman’s Fault?

Andre Johnson Beatdown on Cortland Finnegan

First Monday Night Game:Chiefs 21- Chargers 14

Bad Santa

8 Crazy Nights

Christmas Vacation

The Grinch

Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton cele-brates after win over South Carolina to secure a spot in the BCS Championship. Photo by Robin Trimarchi/Columbus Ledger-Enquirer/MCT

>

PNToday.com

Don’t Miss a Shot

atKyle Brotzman had success for most of his career at Boi-se St. Photo by Joe Jasze-wski/Idaho Statesman/MCT

by Clayton Allison

Photo by Chase Snider

Photo and Illustration by Spencer Price

6 Feature December 21, 2010

Everyone has a goal, what’s yours?Reporter Mike Baker cruises the halls to see what world-changing plans people have for next year.

“To graduate from high school so I can

have a bright future.”

“To join the Army in order to defend our

country.”“Find time to do yoga

at least four days a week”

Cessy

Smith

Car of the Month

Model: 1978 Chrysler Cordoba Nickname: Superman

story and photo by Spencer Price

Alex

Harris

Devon

Carlock

Tyler Molacek

Original Condition of the car:

“The original seat leaned all the

way back every time I sat in it”Guestimated Value: $3500

Color: Red and Blue

Origin: Craigslist for $400, added

New Motor, transmission, installed

sound-system, and repainted

Worst Moments:

“Itdie

donafirstd

ate”

“I

filledupon

edayandth

enextmorn

ingit

was empty because someone

siphoned my gas”

7FeatureDecember 21, 2010

FeatureHolidays are different for the disadvantaged

The Missouri Hotel lobby has a festive touch added for the holiday to raise spirits of the residents. photo by CJ Tice

by CJ Tice

””

It feels good helping people that don’t have the things in life that we do,

-Daniel Courtney

“I want a car.” “Mom, I need that new dress from the mall.” According to Randy Coble, supervisor at The Kitchen, thousands of people in the area want something that many of us take for granted: a home and food. The Kitchen is a local organization that helps the less fortunate with food, clothing, basic household items, and assistance with utilities. “The need for assistance has increased 30 to 40 percent over the last two years, and with the state the economy is in, I don’t expect it to decrease in the near future,” Coble said. Last month, The Kitchen helped an average 175 households per day. As many as twelve people living in a single household is increasingly more common because of the economy. “Families will room together in the same house and split the cost of utilities to make living costs easier,” Coble said. 5,556. That is the number of people that The Kitchen helped in the month of November

this year and are expecting to help around the same number of people, if not more, in the month of December. Coble goes on to say that because of the large amount of need, The Kitchen gets help from another organization across the street from them to make handling such a large number of clients a little bit easier. The Missouri Hotel is primarily a women and children’s shelter that provides many services, including a place to live and a Fresh Start building for those who are under the influence. The Fresh Start building is an overnight shelter where those who are either high or drunk can stay the night to sober up. This is important during drastically cold nights, as many shelters turn away those who are obviously

under the influence of drugs or alcohol. “Men can also stay at the shelter, but they have to meet

certain criteria. They must either be married to someone staying at the shelter or be a father,” case manager at the Missouri Hotel, Carrie Ragsdale said. Along with providing a place to live the Missouri Hotel also provides a 40 hour per week work program, they help residents find jobs, provide counseling and substance abuse help, and they help people get their GED. Ragsdale stated that they also provide a shelter for homeless teens and provide assistance to children with disabilities. Though the exact number of homeless teens and children in Springfield is not logged, a recent study by the district estimates that around 200 students enrolled in the Springfield Public School district are homeless. that is 1% of the approximately 20,000

students enrolled in schools, according to Community Relations Manager Teresa Bledsoe, but to put that in perspective, 200 students is over half of Kickapoo’s current senior class, for comparison. Along with all the year-round programs offered by the Missouri Hotel,

they have special programs to address the increased need for aid during the winter and holiday

season. “We do several things specifically for the holidays, but our most popular program is a gift shopping center for residents and others to come and purchase gifts for their families and themselves for Christmas,” Ragsdale said. One aspect that The Kitchen is proud of is the fact that they are the largest provider of services for homeless families and that even though programs are helping over 5,000 people every month, between the two shelters they only have about 25 paid workers; the rest of the help comes from volunteers. “The entire organization is thankful for all of the community’s assistance, but that there is always a need for more,” Ragsdale said. “The best way high school students can help is by working with their Community Outreach program, which usually consists of serving hot meals, cleaning, or any other type of maintenance such as organizing supplies,” Ragsdale said. For those who want to help the

less fortunate over the holidays then contact either the Missouri Hotel or The Kitchen. “There are many ways that teens can help. You can do anything

from working at the thrift store or food pantry, to simply making a donation,” Coble said. Many students at Kickapoo volunteer with the homeless in some way, shape, or form. Students that have already donated their time, agree that helping the homeless

provides a feeling of joy that is unmatchable. “It feels good helping people that don’t have the things in life that we do,” freshman Daniel Courtney said.

One way that many teens volunteer is either through a club or with church groups. “A lot of our volunteer assistance comes from church youth groups and school clubs. Groups come to help clean up or to distribute food and supplies,” Ragsdale said. “I’ve never felt more fulfilled

as I have after knowing I’ve made a difference to someone who might have always felt overlooked. You never know who you’re going to entertain,”

senior Connor Coday said. Coday said his church youth group goes on choir tour every year, and part of that trip involves community service, usually with the homeless. Even if there is not a school club or church group that you are a part of you can still volunteer to help. For information on how to help out at The Kitchen, contact Volunteer Services at 837-1590 and ask for Stephanie Pape . If you would like to help with the Missouri Hotel, contact their administration about volunteering at 837-1540. For more

information about either service program you can go online to their website at www.thekitcheninc.org, where you can find contact information for both The Kitchen and the Missouri Hotel.

Hidden Places

All around the school are unknown closets, cubbies and cupboards. so we decided to figure out what was really behind those hard to find, hidden doors.

photos by Spencer Price and Cody Carroll

clockwise: The “darkroom” not really used for developing pictures, hidden within the journalism room.The woodshop classroom a few rooms down from choir and orchestra. Without taking the class, one would not know of its existance.The “slot” between the upstairs gym and the main gym bleachers. Skinny, smelly, and slot-like; hence the name.Mr. Lopez’s office next door to Mr. Fielding’s art room. Very decorative and very hidden.

Over 10 million illegal immigrants are living in the United States today, Could you pass a citizenship test?

Check out your results on PNToday.com after January 7th to see how you did!

1. In what month is the new president inaugurated?2. How many times may a congressman be re-elected?3. Who is the current Vice President of the United States?4. Who makes up the Legislative Branch of our goverment?5. What is the supreme law of the land?6. How long is one senators term?7. How many terms can one president serve?8. How many Supreme Court Justces are there?9. Who wrote the Star-Spangled Banner?10. What is the introduction to the United States Constitution called?

For a chance to win a $15 giftcard to Starbucks, Turn in this cut-out, with your name on it, to locker 2001

deadline is January 7th

8 December 21, 2010PNToday.com