MARCH 2013 • VOLUME 8• ISSUE 3 • 7501 TEASLEY LANE • DENTON, TX 76210

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

SPORTS Soccer & Track

Pg. 6-7

FEATURESSEDD & ROTC

Pg. 3-5

OPINIONNew Playoff

SystemPg. 2

ENTERTAINMENTSudoku

HoroscopesPg. 8

Baseball Swings into Actionby Caleb Barfield & Joshua JordanEditor-in-Chief & Sports Editor

The Wildcat Baseball family is at it again. Another successful season is within reach. “This is an easy team to coach,” said baseball head coach Johnny Kinzy. “They always come ready, practice hard and focus so we can reach our goals.” The boys are working hard and putting in the hours to ensure that they get the results they desire. “We want everyone to pull their own weight and bond together to achieve our goals as a team,” senior catcher Reid Battles said. The boys know that their hard work in the offseason will lead to success during the season.“It’s huge to work hard,” junior catcher Woody Weaver said. “Coach Kinzy makes sure we know what

hard work can do for us. Hard work helps the whole team come together to reach the same goals.”The players ex-pect each other’s best at all times.“I expect 100 per-cent effort and commitment on and off the field,” sophomore second baseman

Kegan Branum said. “We can’t get in any trouble like we did last year. Even the guys that don’t play have a big impact because the support us when we are on the field.” The team feeds off of one anoth-er’s energy and uses it to drive them to success. “I get fired up when I see my teammates have success,” Battles said. “It makes me want to go out there and contribute in any way I can.” The team has formed a special bond like a family on and off the field. “We are all a family,” junior designated hitter Blake Battles said. “We all trust one another and we will do anything for each other.”

At the head of this family are three solid team leaders. Jud Kinzy (pitch-er), Chris Monroe (second baseman), and Cole Wessling (outfielder) all try to set the example for the younger players by their actions on and off the field. But out of these three, the play-ers agree Jud Kinzy sets the standard for the team. “Our team leader is definitely Jud,” Branum said. “He is a good pitcher, and I hope to be like him my senior year.” Aside from all of the sentimental bonds that the team shares with one another, they look forward to building upon last season’s success. “Dropping down to 4A, I like our chances,” Coach Kinzy said. “We played well last year as a 5A team but didn’t have a lot of success hitting the baseball. This year we’ve improved. “The team’s improvements mixed in with the hard work they are putting in will hopefully help the team achieve their goals. “I want us to win our district and make the playoffs,” Branum said. “I just want to see how deep we can go into the playoffs.”The team wants to go all of the way. “Our goal is simple,” Jud Kinzy said. “It’s the expectation of this school. We just want to win state.”

Junior Daulton Horton pitches against Lewisville. (Photo taken by Mrs. Andrea Kinzy)

March 2013 The WireOpinion2

2014 Means Big Changes for NCAA Footballby Caleb BarfieldEditor-in-Chief

For many the BCS (Bowl Confer-ence Series) represents the tradition of college football, but for others it rep-resents a flawed system that had to go. Come 2014, the BCS will be replaced by a four-team playoff system. NCAA football has been in need of this change for a while, as the cur-rent system in place has allowed teams that seem to be of equal stature on paper to compete, and the result is an uneven match. The past two years have been perfect examples of this. The Alabama Crimson Tide were matched against the LSU Tigers, and shut out LSU 21-0. In 2013, Alabama (2) crushed the number one ranked team, Notre Dame 42-14. Games like these have left fans question-ing the BCS system. The polling system has also determined the fate of teams that only had one loss making it tough for them to get a chance at the Championship. For example in 2008, Texas, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma experienced a three-way tie each having one loss to one of the others. It was determined that Oklahoma would go to the Championship based on the fact that they had beat Tech by more points than Texas had beaten Oklahoma. The Sooners went on to lose to Florida 24-14. By only allowing two teams a chance at the Championship it makes the game a shot it the dark as to whether or not the two teams chosen by polls will be an equal and entertaining matchup. This system is based off of pure speculation and can result in uneven matchups, leav-ing out teams who possibly could’ve had a better chance at winning. In the past few years many teams with perfect records have been left out of the question due to speculation such as they weren’t good

three. This will at least add a little more competition to getting into the champion-ship. This will also ensure that the two teams in the championship have earned it and will be evenly matched, so we don’t see shutout championships. The system will also give a little leeway to teams who have only one loss, so we know that one loss during the regular season didn’t prevent that team from a chance at the championship, but instead advanced or lost in the playoffs. College sports fans are happy that football has finally gotten on board with the playoff/tournament style of deter-mining the champion that basketball to bowling have. But some have concerns as to whether or not this will eliminate the bowl system, and only four teams will play in the post-season. This is not the case, the University Presidents decided to implement a semi-finals system that will replace the bowls. The semi-finals will rotate between six bowl sights each year. There will also be an additional three contract bowls. They are the Champions Bowl, which is a partnership between the Big 12 and SEC, the Rose Bowl, which is between the Big Ten and Pac 12, and an undetermined bowl for the ACC, which might continue with the Orange Bowl. The semi-final games will be played either on New Year’s Eve or New Years day. The Championship game will always be played the first Monday of the New Year. Each system has its positives and negatives, but the playoff system has the clear advantage and will fix a lot of the problems the BCS created. This is an exciting time for NCAA football and will prove to be a positive change, so try to enjoy it, because the playoff system will be here at least until 2025.

enough based off of the fact that their conference wasn’t tough enough to play in. Teams like Boise State (2006, 2009), TCU (2010), Ohio State (2012) have all experienced this in recent years. So college football fans, players, coaches, and University Presidents have come together to adopt a playoff system that will eliminate some of these issues. A poll system will still be in place to rank the teams, however instead of just taking the top two teams, the top four will compete. Number one will play number four, and number two will play number

Alabama head coach Nick Saban hoists the trophy following a 42-14 win against Notre Dame in the BCS National Championship game at Sun Life Stadium on Monday, January 7, 2013, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (C.W. Griffin/Miami Herald/MCT)

Playoff System Replaces BCS

Feature 3March 2013 The Wire

by Edie ScottStaff Writer

Dancing to Promote Diversity

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EDITOR IN CHIEF: Caleb Barfield ASSISTANT EDI-TOR: Sydnie McCormick SPORTS EDITOR: Joshua Jordan STAFF WRITERS: Edie ScottKris EckstormChristian DeBruinHaley CarsonMackenzie OverturfConnor McClainBryce BabcockFACULTY ADVI-SOR: Mr. Larry TurnerPRINCIPAL: Mrs. Barbara Fischer

NEWSPAPER POLICIESAs the student newspaper of John Guyer High School, The Wire provides a forum for student writing and opinion. The opinions (signed) and staff editorials (unsigned) contained herein do not necessarily reflect the opin-ions of the principal of John Guyer High School or the Board of Trustees of Denton ISD. Staff editorials represent the opinion of the paper. Letters to the editor and guest columns are welcomed, but are subject to mass edit-ing for reasons of clarity, space, accuracy and good taste. The Wire reserves the right not to print letters received. Give letters, guest columns and classified advertisements to Caleb Barfield or Mr. Turner in room H166 or E-mail to: Lturner@dentonisd.org

“Some material courtesy of American Society of News-paper Editors/KRT Campus High School Newspaper Service.”

SEDD Organization Continues to Blossom

Students Educating Diversity through Dance (SEDD) does exactly what its name sug-gests. Students of all different backgrounds come together to explore the many dances of the world, learning together and even teaching one another. These dances branch from salsa to country to east coast hip-hop. The group meets at 4:30 every Thursday in the cafeteria and is open to all. No prior experi-ence is needed, which, according to junior Nadia Garcia, is why everyone should join. “It’s a great after-school program,” Garcia said. “My favorite thing about it is meeting new people and dancing cultural dances. It has made me be not as shy.” For junior Erika Castillo, not only has she found herself a

“[Dancing] really helps you be fit,” said assistant sponsor Ms. Celis-Gore. “It’s the same as going running or something like that.” The club has performed at a variety of places in the past, including Cinco de Mayo, Sam Houston Elementary and pep ral-lies. No set performances have been made for this year. How-ever, at the end of the school year, they host their annual show in the auditorium.SEDD is always looking for new members to help spread the fun and contribute to the group. “If you can walk, than you can dance,” said head sponsor Ms. Peña. “If you give it a try, you will love it.”

better person because of SEDD, but has gotten the chance to par-ticipate in something that makes her happy. “[SEDD] helped me open up more and be more comfort-able with who you are. We’ve become a big family,” Castillo

said. “When I’m dancing, I feel joyful, happiness, energetic, and amazing. It’s a place where you dance all your problems away.” The club also serves as a great form of exercise, for those looking to become active.

Ms. Pena leads a traditional Latin dance class for her SEDD stu-dents. (Photo taken by Ashlyn Adamson)

FeatureMarch 2013 The Wire

Senior Adam Oh Wants to Change the WorldSydnie McCormickAssistant Editor

Harvard Bound

Some kids dream of being an astronaut, others the president and some just want to be fa-mous. But, as a child, Adam Oh always dreamed of something greater, greater than the presi-dent, astronauts and Hollywood. Oh dreamed of making long-lasting impressions on people’s lives. Now, eleven years after his humanitarian interests first began to bud, Oh is ready to bring his goals to fruition. With an acceptance letter to Harvard, a world of possibilities awaits the current high school senior. As his first choice university, Oh’s acceptance to Harvard was a moment of pure astonishment. “[Being accepted] was surreal,” Oh said. “I didn’t even know how that had happened. I was fully expecting an e-mail with an access code, not an acceptance letter. When I was scrolling down and I saw the word ‘Congratulations,’ I was shocked. It took about a full minute before the ‘Oh my God this can’t be real’ feeling set in.” Although Oh is on track to being valedictorian with a perfect 5.0 GPA, he had res-ervations about his preparedness for the prestigious school before he was finally accepted. “I doubted myself so many times. I’ve seen some people’s posts on College Confidential about be-

education, however; this Harvard-bound student has a life outside of his studies. “I love to hang out with friends and watch movies. I love to play bas-ketball with my brothers and just chill. I’ve never really studied exceptionally hard for anything because I feel like if you just immerse yourself in that studying habit it’s only going to get you to a certain point. After college and all that, it’s about social interac-tions, and it’s not about studying.” Although Oh wasn’t solely com-mitted to studying through his high school years, Ms. Brians, his orchestra teacher, can attest to Oh’s devotion to bettering himself through the art of the violin. “Adam practices during lunch,” Brians said. “[During his off block] he has his instrument out, and he prac-tices. His expectations for himself are very high. He’s very hard on himself, which is why he’s become what he’s become, because his goal is always to be better.” And while that drive got him accepted into an Ivy-League univer-sity, Oh isn’t interested in the showy materialism that can sometimes come along with it. “I don’t really care for extrava-gant things,” Oh said. “I just want to

impact people’s lives. I feel like there’s nothing to live for if you can’t do that. If that’s what you can do, then you actually have a goal in life, and you can change people’s lives, and if you die you’ll actu-ally be remembered for something.”

ing accepted, and they all had 2400 SAT scores, just perfect scores on everything and all around amazing resumes, and I didn’t feel like I had a stellar, perfect resume. But I had a resume full of my passion, and I think that’s what made a difference.” Oh doesn’t only have passion for his

Senior Adam Oh will attend Harvard in the fall of 2013. (Photo taken by Fonii Hashemi)

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FeatureMarch 2013 The Wire

Marching Into Greatnessby Edie ScottStaff Writer

Picture a row of students marching in precision in their crisp uniforms. With the uniforms’ proud badges and shiny shoes, most people don’t realize the meaning beneath the camo and navy thread. Like its owner, the uniform models the core values of the military: strength, courage, and mo-rality. The Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFJROFC) is what sets the standard for being qual-ity American citizens here at school. “We try and bring a sense of military lifestyle and discipline to the normal high school experience,” said junior Kayley Eidson. “We also do a lot of community service for local organizations and the school, and just try to help out as much as possible.” Some organizations JROTC participates in include the city’s non-profit ministry, the Shepherd’s Hand, as well as the school’s student coun-cil. The program also assists with Color Guard and holds the flags for the national anthem during athletic events. Participating in these after-school activities is Jessica Northam’s favor-ite thing about JROTC. “I’ve made so many friends and have learned so much from doing these things. People think we just sit in a classroom, but we really don’t. It’s not just doing push-ups and get-ting yelled at either. We actually go out there and experience things.” As a class, JROTC educates and exposes students to all aspects of the military. “Learning ranges from the history on the military to how to do ceremo-nial drills, like handling rifles. This

year we’re focused on air crafts, but the subject from year to year,” said junior Hector Hernandez. JROTC’s biggest goal for its students is to teach them how to be leaders. Senior Blythe Fentress said, “You’re sort of just thrown into a leadership position”. For Fentress, that has helped in creating the person she is today. “Before joining, I was kind of shy, and I didn’t re-ally have any desire to become a leader,” she said. “It pushed me way out of my comfort zone by forcing me to make decisions, put together projects, and managing stuff. It made me realize that I can take control.”

AFJROTC Builds Leaders

ROTC marches onto C.H. Collins field to present the national and state colors.(Photo taken by Fonii Hashemi)

When the buzzer rang ending the game in favor of Arlington Heights, the Wildcats Boys basketball his-toric season finally came to a close. It had been one for the books, with the school nabbing its first dis-trict title ever, and advancing further in the playoffs than ever before. The Wildcats finished the season 24-6, earning the title of district champions. The season saw some impressive stats as well, with the Wildcats putting up 56 points and 12 assists per game. Almost all of the team will return for next year, which will give the Wildcats some helpful playoff experience. “They’re all team players, all there for each other through ups and downs,” said sophomore Guard Mitchell Williard. “I learned that you have to preserve through all sit-uations and to handle whatever life throws at you,” said forward Joshua Jordan. In addition to the suc-cess of this year, offseason will be a time of develop-ment for the Wildcats looking ahead to next season. Sophomore Guard Sean Choate says he needs to improve on physical strength, and get in the weight room a little more. The team wants to use this year’s successes to build in areas they lacked, especially while still get-ting accustomed to the move from 5A to 4A. “The team needs to work hard, improve overall skills, [but] we did pretty good, accomplishing some of our goals,” Mitchell Williard said.Coach Long himself said he even has areas to im-prove on. “I think I can always get better as a coach,” he said. While they weren’t able to bring home a championship, this year has been a big step up. A district championship will be a good base for next year. “I think champions learn from any failures that they have, and I think that’s what we’ll do,” Long said. Coach Long says the team’s goals are always to win a state championship. “I couldn’t be more proud of how the guys played the passion and the energy they showed, and the heart that they played with.”

Varsity Boys BasketballWin District

by Bryce Babcock Staff Writter

6March 2013 The Wire

SportsKicking Off the Season Right

by Joshua JordanSports Editor

Both boys and girls soccer teams want to keep the recent success in athletics. With breakout, record setting seasons in boys and girls basketball, and the school’s first ever state championship in football, the soccer program wants to keep the re-cent trend of dominance going. “We want to go to state this year,” said senior boys soccer player Kevin Leon. “That’s the expectation.” The soccer teams have big dreams and have the talent to make a deep playoff push. “We have a lot of good players that come in,” said Coach Schroeder, the head boys’ soccer head coach. “They start play-ing when they are young and their parents support them in soccer, so they have a very high level of skill by the time they get to this age.”

Not only do both teams possess great talent, but they also have great leadership. With Coach Schroeder identifying Sean Dia-mond, McKenna Cook, and Brian Jacinto as boys team leaders and Coach Blevins naming Britanii Crabtree, Kaitlyn Cairo, and Megan Stokes team captains, the two teams have excellent team chemistry and leader-ship. “Even though we have really good play-ers, we still need everyone to do their part to be successful,” Coach Blevins said. “Soccer is a team sport and I can’t single out indi-vidual players because they all do what they do very well. Each position needs the other position to be able to do their thing.” With all of the talent each team pos-sesses, a district championship won’t be a cakewalk as both the boys and girls coach admits that Byron Nelson and Birdville are

really good and will be their biggest district foe. “From our district, for four years in a row, a team from our district has won the entire re-gion and went to Austin for state,” said Coach Blevins, head girls soccer coach. Last year it was Byron Nelson, and the year before that it was Birdville. I look for those two teams to be exceptional this year. In fact, Byron Nelson went to the state championship game last year and got beat in a shootout. Byron Nelson is a quality, quality team.” The coaches want the best from their play-ers and push them each and every day with the end goal in mind. “The coaches are really good,” Leon said. “He gets on our butt a lot though. But it’s all for good and to make us better.” Not only do the soccer coaches aim to make their players better on the field, but they also aim to make them better men and women in the community. “Soccer relates to life,” Coach Blevins said. “We talk about doing things right and taking care of the things that we have control over. Sometimes the game doesn’t go our way, but there are certain things like being on time, treating each other right, respecting the competition, being a good sport that we have control over whether we win or lose. We hold that in high regard.” Not only do the coaches instill character in their players, but they also keep the game fun. “I love the game,” Leon said. “I like hav-ing fun competing with my teammates against the other team.” The coaches and players also like success and expect nothing but success. “We hope to be competitive in every game, earn one of the four playoff spots, and win the district championship,” Coach Schroeder said. “We want to be prepared for our big playoff run.”

Sean Diamond fields the ball against Birdville, and prepares to score.(Photo taken by Sophie Bel)

7March 2013 The Wire

SportsWildcat Track On The Attack

Track has its Sights on District

Track is off to a sprint as practices and meets have begun. Both boys and girls teams have similar goals. “We expect to win district and our goal for this year is to win regionals as a team,” Lady Wildcat track coach Meagan Hard-esty said. Boys track Coach Flemming has similar goals for his team. “Our goal is to win a district title, then regional, and hope-fully state,” Wildcat track coach Oschlor Flemming said. Both teams have great competitors who are sure to do outstanding in the events they compete in. However, the two teams are looking for talent in different places. “Our greatest talent is in our older guys like Ellis Jef-ferson and Josh Harris who as

event. We are looking especially strong in our relays and hurdles,” Flem-ming said. Both teams have had success in their meets. The girls com-peted in their first meet at the Keller Timber Creek Timed Trials on Valentines day. Both Boys and Girls competed in the Billy Ford Wildcat Relays which was held on February 21. The teams now have their focus on an even more important meet. “Once the Wild-cat Relays are over, we are headed to District,” Flemming said.

If there is one thing that both

coaches want the Guyer student body to know about their teams it is the boys and girls hard work and dedication to the track team. “These kids work hard,” Flemming said. “They are com-ing in before and after school on their own time, and many play multiple sports.”

seniors will continue our tradi-tion of success,” Flemming said. The girls team is look-ing for talent in its younger competitors. “We see young talent in our freshmen and sophomores, like Ola Akinniyi and Candalyn Lyons,” Hardesty said. The transition from 5A to 4A will help both teams, but there is still strong competition

in the district with Denton and Wichita Falls Rider. “We have been putting in the work day in and day out to be stronger and better than the competition,” Hardesty said. It might be too soon to tell but both coaches feel that they’ll have strong athletes com-peting in each event. “We want to be strong and compete well in every

Junior Jalen Hunter sprints past the competition in the 4 X 200 at the Billy Ford Wildcat Relays.(Photo taken by Jeremy Norton)

by Caleb BarfieldEditor-in-Chief

8March 2013 The Wire

EntertainmentWired Zodiac

AQUARIUS: JANUARY 20-FEBRUARY 19Many things that people say over the coming days will appear nonsensica. You’re probably going insane.PISCES: FEBRUARY 20-MARCH 20Honestly, you don’t really do anything worthwhile. This week may be a good opportunity for you to change that. ARIES: MARCH 21-APRIL 20A skydiving accident may befall you if you go skydiving. Alternatively, it may not..TAURUS: APRIL 21-MAY 21You may be left to pick up the pieces of someone else’s failures today. GEMINI: MAY 22 - JUNE 22Watch out. Life throws us all crazy things now and then. Like swords made of ham. And dogs on skateboards. CANCER: JUNE 23-JULY 23Having a box of tissues close to hand might become im-portant over the coming minutes.LEO: JULY 24- AUGUST 23If you want to ride your bicycle, then by all means do it. But I refuse to be held responsible for any consequences.VIRGO: AUGUST 24-SEPTEMBER 23Although danger is never far away, you may have an ex-hilirating time in the coming days. LIBRA: SEPTEMBER 24-OCTOBER 23Whilst this horoscope might not apply to all of you, it seems worthwhile to say that Margaret is going to have a really nice time today. SCORPIO: OCTOBER 24-NOVEMBER 22The accuracy of any horoscope today will be directly re-lated to the number of things you do today. SAGITTARIUS: NOVEMBER 23-DECEMBER 22Even wild stallions won’t be able to drag you away from the amazing day you’re going to have today.CAPRICORN: DECEMBER 23-JANUARY 19Harmless fun may come back to harm you over the com-ing weeks.

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