Deaf Football Team Went Undefeated for an Entire Season

The athletic program at the California School for the Deaf in Riverside has been the target of humiliation and harassment for years. They have been mocked at matches and overlooked by opposing teams. However, they are now rising to the top and overcoming all adversities.

After losing seven straight seasons, the school’s football team is close to winning its first division championship ever. This season, the Cubs have been undefeated, destroying their opponents in the field. Their outstanding success in their last 11 games placed them at the top of their Southern California division.

Last Friday night, the Cubs beat the Desert Christian Knights by a landslide, leaving them only two games away from victory. Nevertheless, the team already feels like a winner by getting this far.

Throughout the athletic program’s history, its teams have never won a championship or made it past the second round of playoffs. This season, the story has changed. According to quarterback Trevin Adams, it was their great chemistry among players that led them to success.

“We can express ourselves completely,” said Trevin. “We can be leaders. We can be assertive.”

Many teams use signals to establish their next play, but none of them compare to the Cubs. Since they use Sign Language, communication between players is much quicker and effective. Instead of wasting time running to talk to the coaches, a simple sign from across the field is enough.

Additionally, coaches believe that deaf players have more developed visual senses, making them particularly alert to movement. Therefore, they are more aware of the position of their opponents in the field.

The team has already won its league title and is now on its way to the tired round of the playoffs for small schools. This has brought great joy to students and members of the community who have long waited for this moment.

Physical education teacher and coach, Keith Adams, expressed this happiness in a statement. “The players can now believe in themselves again,” he said. “They’ve grown up in an area where there have always been people taking advantage of them because they can’t hear. So it’s definitely brought morale up — their self-esteem is a lot higher.”

Players, families, and staff see their victories as more than athletic success. For many, it symbolizes that deaf children can triumph together and their skills should never be underestimated.

Bibliography

Evans, L. (2021, November 7). California School for the Deaf-Riverside has 8-man football title hopes. Los Angeles Times. https://www.latimes.com/sports/highschool/story/2021-11-07/california-school-for-the-deaf-8-man-football-championship-hopes

Fuller, T. (2021, November 17). Underdog No More, a Deaf Football Team Takes California by Storm. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/15/us/riverside-california-deaf-football-team.html

Jones, C. (2021, November 15). School for the Deaf in Riverside celebrates undefeated football season. EdSource. https://edsource.org/updates/school-for-the-deaf-in-riverside-celebrates-undefeated-football-season