A sudden surge of atomic blond has seemingly spread through the hallways of Foran High School as many members of the football team have made the decision to bleach their hair. The first round of platinum blond struck the school on November 11 when the team’s seniors arrived at school with their new hairdos.
“I was ready for change. Me and my friends wanted to do something funny because it’s our senior year. It started as a captain’s thing, and then we motivated other people to do it. It branched off, and now it’s kind of lit up,” senior captain Jagger Rees explains.
With their final regular-season home game of their high school careers and state qualifiers on the horizon, the Lions seized the opportunity to shake things up.
Senior captain Wyatt Shallis confirms, “We think we’re going to make states, and we’ve got senior night coming up, so we just wanted to do something for senior night.”
For natural blonds like Rees and Shallis, their new color wasn’t too drastic of a change. However, natural brunettes like senior captain Brandon Marschner have adapted a completely new look in support of their team.
Following in their senior captains’ footsteps, on November 13, a wave of newly-blond juniors walked through Foran’s doors. Junior Kyle Viesselman corroborates that the influence from the captains spurred some of the underclassmen into action.
“After the seniors did it, it kind of washed onto the underclassmen to do it too,” he shares. “I think that it creates team unity, plus I think it’ll look cool when we play against Law.”
Like Viesselman, many of the team members are happy with their hair transformations.
“I like the new hair color. Since I’ve been brunette my whole life, I like being blond for once,” expresses junior Alex Testani.
However, not everyone was immediately on board with this new trend. Some girlfriends of the football players were unsure about the drastic new look.
“It’s definitely an interesting look. I think they kind of look like a cult? But it’s growing on me, I don’t hate it!” senior Lila Tarczali comments.
Her lighthearted remark reflects the mixed reactions from those outside the team, who are still adjusting to the blond and unexpected change.
Similar to Tarczali, senior Rosina Smith was also surprised by the hair.
“I don’t understand why the bleach and tone became a trend or how it came to be about. But I like how they’re trying to represent the school spirit of Foran!” she states.
Despite their initial shock, the girlfriends have been supportive of their boyfriends’ bold hair transformations. Many admire the team’s spirit and appreciate the camaraderie the change has brought, even if it took some time to get used to the new look.
Much like the girlfriends’ initial reactions, Mr. Garrett Walker, the football’s team coach, was also taken aback by the change.
“I was surprised at the awkwardness of how they looked. The guys do like to do things to try to get reactions out of me. I wasn’t mad or frustrated with anything they did, it was just shocking to see those kids have that blond of hair.” Walker explains.
While his initial reaction was one of surprise, Walker soon realized that the new look was more than just a trend or a silly prank—it was a team-building moment.
“It’s something they did collectively and they had a good time with it. It’s given them a little bit of life in the locker room, so I’m all for it.”
Even if there were objections to the new hair, witnessing the unity and excitement within the team would change anyone’s mind in an instant.
By November 15, the trend had spread throughout a majority of the team, becoming a symbol of their unity and team spirit. On senior night, the players took to the field with their helmets off, proudly showing off their new blond hair. With their bond stronger than ever, the team celebrated a well-earned victory that very same night.
