March 30, 2025 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Weaver, SJO football is a way of life

With the 2019 St. Joseph-Ogden football season ready to kickoff on Friday evening, we are beginning a new feature called the Countdown to Kickoff. This will highlight either a player, cheerleader or a staff member connected with the football season in some way shape or form. With high school being such an important part to this community on Friday nights in the fall, the camaraderie, sights and sounds of Spartan football electrify the evening sky. We hope that you will join us in the excitement that is Spartan football as they march toward another postseason appearance.

Brayden Weaver is no stranger to St. Joseph-Ogden football.

And the tradition that comes with it.

Weaver, a linebacker/running back, will begin his senior season with the Spartans at 7 p.m. on Friday as SJO hosts St. Thomas More to kick off the season.

Weaver has played football for many years, beginning at the youth level and progressing each year, culminating in being named a team captain for the upcoming 2019 season. It’s the second straight season Weaver will hold that distinction.

“In my junior year, the coaches chose the captains, so I was honored to be named one of them last season,” Weaver said. “This year, the captains were voted on by the players, so it is very gratifying to be named a captain by your peers.”

This success for Weaver just didn’t happen by accident. For many years, Weaver played in the Vermilion Valley Football League, often being coached by his dad, Blake, who coached at the junior varsity and varsity level in the league. Weaver acknowledges that the time spent playing youth football has prepared him for competing at the high school level, and he, as well as the other seniors on the team, have a simple goal in mind: make the playoffs and advance deep in the postseason.

“(The playoffs) is the only goal, and simply just making the postseason won’t be good enough,” Weaver said, “because we want to compete in the playoffs and go after some of the hardware that teams that came before us have accomplished.”

SJO has qualified for the playoffs in 27 of the last 28 seasons, only missing out in 2017 after starting that run in 1991. Not being among the playoff teams two years ago is something Weaver and his teammates didn’t take lightly.

“You saw all of those teams during that postseason streak play, and to not make it left a bitter taste in our mouths and a willingness to work harder,” Weaver said.

That determination paid off in 2018, as the Spartans began a new playoff streak, only to draw the eventual state champion Monticello in the first round, with the Sages winning 50-7 in a Class 3A playoff game.
Weaver is among a core of seniors who have played together for quite some time, dating back to as early as kindergarten for some. Weaver sees that as a highlight of growing up in the SJO community.
“You always envision holding up trophies with your friends when you are younger, and even though we did a lot of that with the youth program, we have one final chance as a group to hold up bigger trophies this year,” Weaver said. “Sure, winning in fourth grade is great, but at the high school level, the game is much faster. Plus, you have to welcome the younger groups in, and I think we’ve done a good job with that as well.”
A gameday atmosphere means different things to different people, but Weaver treats it like a normal day up until a certain point.

“We usually lift as a team the morning of a game, and maybe have a team breakfast here and there, but once 3 p.m. rolls around, I pretty much shut myself down from outside distractions, such as turning off my phone and not talking to a lot of people,” Weaver said. “Maybe I’ll watch some film, but mainly I just keep to myself, which gets my focus on the main goal at hand, which is to get a win that night.”

Pre-game rituals are a part of football at any level, and Weaver is not alone in this realm either. He wears the same socks each week and puts a penny in his right sock before every game, citing that “it’s good luck to carry a penny with you.”

Weaver said stepping out onto a field on Friday night is unlike any other experience.

“Running out of the tunnel onto the field, you have the crowd there and the lights are shining bright on the field,” Weaver said. “The adrenaline really begins to flow through your body, doing what you love with the guys you have done this with for so many years.”

As far as what lies ahead for Weaver after graduation, that part of the story has not yet been written. Weaver, who is a multi-sport athlete like many of the students at SJO, wants to play at the next level, either on the baseball diamond or football field.

“Right now, football would be the front-runner, and hopefully I have a good enough season that I catch some eyes in that realm,” Weaver said. “I also love baseball about as much as football, so either of those are a possibility for me down the road.”

Banner
Related Posts

SJO baseball ups win streak to 13 games and Haley nets 400th career victory

April 26, 2023

April 26, 2023

The path to 20 wins each season can take high school baseball teams on a different path. Maybe the majority...

Harper sparks SJO soccer to another win

September 25, 2024

September 25, 2024

The St. Joseph-Ogden boys’ soccer team has proven this season it can find the back of theopponent’s net. Frequently. The...

Mills, Ketchum spark Spartans into regional championship match

October 13, 2022

October 13, 2022

Logan Mills probably has never had a more meaningful goal. Hunter Ketchum probably has never made more meaningful saves. And,...

10 things you don’t know about me… SJO Quarterback Logan Smith

September 2, 2022

September 2, 2022

We asked St. Joseph-Ogden quarterback Logan Smith to tell us 10 interesting things about himself. Here are his answers. My...

Cain, Pence help SJO boys’ basketball post two wins

January 27, 2020

January 27, 2020

Playing a competitive nonconference schedule is nothing new for the St. Joseph-Ogden High School boys’ basketball team. The Spartans face...

Relays shine for SJO track and field

March 25, 2019

March 25, 2019

A St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’ track and field relay team won a title at a prestigious indoor meet, the...

Get to know SJO Volleyball player Chloe harper

October 31, 2022

October 31, 2022

What do you think makes the team so successful? I think the motivation and fight our team has is what...

Spartans learn postseason foe, lose close game at Charleston

May 2, 2019

May 2, 2019

Playing for the first time in a week after inclement weather caused multiple postponements, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School baseball...

Ward, Cromwell help SJO softball end losing skid

April 24, 2019

April 24, 2019

Losing streaks are never easy to deal with. But thanks to Kaylee Ward and Ashtyn Cromwell, the four-game skid the...

GCMS awaits as SJO girls’ basketball continues postseason run

February 11, 2019

February 11, 2019

Four high school girls’ basketball teams, including St. Joseph-Ogden, will descend upon the Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley gymnasium on Monday night. By...

Frick, Brooks deliver, but SJO girls’ basketball loses twice

January 16, 2023

January 16, 2023

The St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’ basketball team kept it close in its two Illini Prairie Conference games last week,...

Get to know… SJO Tennis Player Lily Rice

October 14, 2022

October 14, 2022

We asked SJO Tennis Player Lily Rice three questions. Here are her answers. Who is your favorite tennis player of...

Hug, Martinie help SJO girls’ basketball win regional title

February 21, 2023

February 21, 2023

Winning regional championships is nothing new for the St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’basketball program. But earning one during the 2022-23...

Blackburn soars on Friday nights

September 6, 2019

September 6, 2019

Kaylee Blackburn isn’t afraid of heights. In fact, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School cheerleader is known as a high-flyer. Blackburn,...

Postseason play begins for St. Joseph Middle School baseball, softball teams

September 22, 2020

September 22, 2020

Whether the St. Joseph Middle School would have baseball and softball teams this school year was uncertain. All because of...

Comments
Leave a Reply