Across all facets of life, perfection is something that is inherently difficult to achieve. Once it is reached, it can be even harder to maintain without the work and effort necessary to do so.

Westwood Middle School football has gotten a taste of perfection over the last couple of seasons. Up until two weeks ago, the Rockets had not lost a game since 2024.

Now coming off a bye week ahead of the regular- season finale, Westwood is looking to show it can pick up right where it left off at home against Forrest Thursday. In addition to getting back in the win column, the Rockets also hope to get the chance to compete for a 3-peat in the Duck River Valley Conference championship.

There is still plenty to determine as far as that goes, with Thursday’s game being one factor in how the upcoming district title game could shake out.

“We’re nervous. We have a lot on the game, because if Cascade beats Forrest and we beat Forrest, then we’re gonna have a championship,” Eighth grader Berott Clem said during practice last Wednesday. “But if Forrest beats Cascade and then we beat Forrest, it’s gonna be a three-way tie.”

While there are some circumstances that are out of the team’s control as far as the postseason is concerned, the players themselves are feeling ready to do what they can to give themselves the chance to compete for another district crown.

“As a line we feel pretty good. We feel like we’ve blocked good this season,” eighth grader Eric Dickerson said. “We’ve had some troubles with some formations and stuff, but otherwise we feel good going into the game.”

While not indicative of how Thursday’s game could go, losses have been rare in the Westwood program as of late. Going into their week 7 game at Cascade, the Rockets had won 19 in a row, dating back to midway through the 2024 season.

Along the way, the program won back-to-back DRVC titles the last two years and completed a historic 9-0 season in 2025.

That streak came to an end in a close battle, with the Champions ultimately coming out on top 24-22 to end the Rockets’ run.

“I told the guys there were a lot of very upset people Thursday night, which in a way is a good thing, because you see that they care and it matters to them, but in a lot of ways, it’s kind of like there’s a lot of pressure off. There’s a lot of weight off the shoulders,” Westwood coach Matt Mueller said of the loss. “Our main goal was getting back to the DRVC championship, having a chance to get three in a row and that’s still on the table. You’re gonna have bad nights. They’re called streaks for a reason. They end, ours just happened to last over two years. Everybody knows as they say, all good things must come to an end, but it’s take that pain, take that sadness that you feel and turn it into anger, turn it into some aggression and want to go out and play against a very good Forrest team.”

Despite a week in between games, that drive is still there within the players. While the loss hurt, the guys are looking forward to the chance to get back on track.

“I only got to play for like five minutes in the first quarter (against Cascade) before I had to go to the hospital because of my finger,” eighth grader Brentley Brown said. “I didn’t get to hit anybody that game, so I’m fired up to get ready to hit somebody. I’m not gonna be able to practice until next week, so I’m trying to get mentally prepared for that to go and beat them (Forrest).”

Getting ready for Forrest also means just letting the past be the past. The players understand this and are not letting the result of Cascade’s game impact their preparation.

“We just gotta get over the loss. There’s not a lot of things we can’t do about it now, except get better,” eighth grader Marcus Monahan said. “I don’t think anybody on this team wants to feel that again, so we’ve just gotta get better at it and put in the work.”

Outside of the program itself, getting back on track for the game against Forrest also presents an opportunity to quell any chatter that the Rockets have fallen off. Quieting this noise also serves as a driving factor.

“It just gets me motivated to show the rest of our division that we still run it,” Dickerson said. “That we can bounce back from our mistakes and still win.”

While the Cascade game was not the result Westwood wanted, the Rockets are still sitting at 6-1 on the season with plenty of positives to take into the home stretch. From Mueller’s perspective, this year’s group has shown what it can still be capable of, both in the game itself and with the way they approach preparation as well.

“They were dedicated to being good football players and that’s something, especially at the middle school level, that you don’t often see. A lot of people go out and practice and they’ll work hard and they’ll be good football players, but these guys, one thing, are into the mental aspect of it,” Mueller said. “Watching film, being able to recognize formations and checks and things and they’ve really bought into being mature football players and that’s the big step to take.”

As for the players themselves, Mueller said only three on the current roster have been a part of the streak from the beginning. That exclusive list includes Dickerson, Brown and fellow eighth grader John Fournier.

Among these three, as well as for the remaining roster, one thing that being a part of the streak has taught them is how to get the job done and do what it takes to come out with a victory.

“Just seeing a lot of the players play last year, seeing their hard work and dedication and what they put into it,” Brown said. “Having a practice against them and playing with them, you see what they do and kind of pick it up.”

For the majority of Westwood’s roster, Thursday’s game will be the first time that they will be going into a game following a loss. While unfamiliar territory for many, it does present this year’s roster with a unique opportunity as well.

The Rockets’ historic winning streak has ended. The difficulties of achieving and maintaining perfection will make beginning a new streak difficult, but the opportunity to lay the foundation of a new one is right there in front of them.

“It feels good. It feels different. I’ve never really led a streak,” Clem said of the team’s possibilities. “It’ll feel good to leave a good reputation, like to two in a row to DRVC and then next year they keep going with it. It’ll feel good.”

Regardless of whether the team is able to string together a long succession of wins again or not, Mueller’s main focus remains getting the team a chance to continue competing for district titles and preparing the players for the next chapters of their football careers at the high school level.

“Streaks obviously say that you’re doing something right, but it’s championships that matter. This is finishing up my fourth year here. When I took the job, we just wanted to be consistently in the mix. We didn’t know what was coming, especially after 0-7 our first year and barely scoring 36 points I think the whole season. We didn’t know that we were gonna be able to go on this run, but we just want to play good football,” Mueller said. “We want to get these guys ready to play at the high school level and I think you’re seeing that, especially at Coffee County right now, where over half the 22 starters are Westwood guys starting in a 6A program. A lot of people want to knock us because we play in the little old DRVC and we’re little old Westwood. A couple of plays break the other way, Coffee County’s sitting at 4-0 with over half their starters from little old Westwood, so we’re pretty proud of these guys that we’re putting out and I know I am as a coach and we are as a school.”

Kickoff of Thursday’s game against Forrest is set for 6:30 p.m.