Oswego Panthers made it to the State Championship and faced the number one team in the Midwest, the Mt Carmel Caravan that boasted seven players who are heading to Division One Football next season. Panthers played toe to toe with the Caravan, and the defense held the high-flying offense to only 20 points. Oswego came into the game as an underdog and came out of this gaining respect for the Panthers football program. Realizing in the past thirty years Oswego Panthers Football has been a quiet powerhouse. Starting in the 1990 season the panthers have run off Three State Championship appearances, two state titles, five semifinal appearances, ten quarterfinal appearances, and thirty-two playoff appearances in four different football classes, 4A, 5A, 7A, and 8A. This is going along with only having Three Football Coaches that come from the Ken Pickerill coaching tree, the founder of Oswego Panther Football. Throughout the years, event thou our school District has grown, we have added Oswego East who is also building a regional power football. The Oswego Panther tradition has not changed. Many of the current players have ties to the tradition of Panther Pride, and many of the Coaches as well.

In an era of when others want to have the debate about public football programs vs catholic programs and private schools and the disadvantages that the public schools have the Panthers went into the Championship game with no complaints and just focusing on representing their community and their own tradition the Panthers took the State number one team to a tough and physical game in which to Mt.Carmels credit they won and a 4th Constitutive State title is a huge accomplishment and is a testament to a program that Frank Lenti started and Jordan Lynch has continued that program. Coach Cooney and Coach Lynch have in common of both playing for a State Championship as a player for their respective high schools and continuing their programs traditions.

So let others continue to make excuses and talk about a debate that quite frankly is tiresome. Instead lets celebrate the honor and accomplishments of what this team did and pay respect to another team who has run a clean and traditional program.
Let others make excuses here in Oswego we focus on results and developing the future leaders of tomorrow this has been the Panther Tradition that was definitely represented and for the future of the Panthers is bright to all the Panthers, coaches, parents and community thank you for writing a new chapter in our storied football program.