Warrenton high school cheerleading coach Tyleah Patterson had a dream.

The dream started at a young age. While she spent her early years in elementary and middle school in Warrenton, she moved briefly to Portland in high school. With a background in dancing, she was drawn to cheerleading there, an activity unavailable to her in Warrenton.

“I remember being disappointed that Warrenton High School didn’t have a cheer team,” Patterson said via email. “I told myself that if the program still did not exist when I was older, I would do my best to change it.”

After starting her cheerleading and coaching career in Portland, Patterson returned home to the North Coast determined to fulfill her personal goal of reviving the Warrenton cheer program.

There was a time when Warrenton had a cheerleading team, but it was not active when Patterson was growing up. She said there had not been a cheerleading program there for more than 30 years.

While she was determined to change that, Patterson found that bringing back the program was not an easy task. She spent more than a year advocating for it before the school acquiesced.

Patterson made her dream come true. She is now in her 10th year as a cheerleading coach — and it’s her eighth year as head of the cheerleading team.

Making it all come true

Once the program was given the go-ahead, Patterson had to start from scratch. Since there had been no cheerleading program at Warrenton for over three decades, the program started out as a club. This meant the team spent its early years building up numbers, demonstrating commitment and establishing its value to both the school and the community.

“Over time, we grew into a recognized sport,” Patterson said. “In the 2021-22 school year, we took another major step by entering our first competitive season rather than focusing exclusively on sideline cheer.”

Competitive cheerleading is a structured athletic sport where teams perform high-energy, 2.5-minute choreographed routines consisting of tumbling, stunting, pyramids, jumps, and dance.

The Warriors made their mark in the sport right out of the gate. They won first place in the 2022 Oregon Cheerleading Coaches Association cheer championships, placed third in 2023 and got second in the 2025 competition. In addition, the Warriors cheer program has seen its athletes recognized as all-Americans by the Universal Cheerleaders Association. They’ve also received college recruitment opportunities and have competed for highly selective teams, such as All-State.

In addition to building the high school cheer program, Patterson has organized a number of youth clinics introducing younger children to cheerleading. Patterson enlisted the help of Celeste Kenneally of Warrenton Kids Incorporated to establish a youth cheer program. It serves as a bridge, connecting younger athletes with the high school team.

It’s a family, say Warrenton cheerleaders

The current Warrenton cheer squad for the 2026 fall season consists of 12 athletes. The captain is senior Anuhea Gafal. The rest of the team members are: Saw Cowan; Lily Malvony; Jax Pierce; Lilly Peel; Teagan Secord; Aurora Holloway; Natalia Nearing; and Jannat Ring.

Gafal, who said she has only been cheerleading for three years, was drawn to the sport in part because of the camaraderie. “There were seniors I really admired and the program was really strong,” Gafal said. “The program is close knit and coach Patterson is really supportive.”

Kornder said she was inspired by her older cheerleading sister, Sarah, to give cheerleading a shot.

“When I was in third grade, coach Celeste Kenneally started Warrenton Kids Inc.,” Kornder said via email. “When I saw it, I told my mom to sign me up so I could be just like my sister.”

Kornder said her sister Sarah continues to be an inspiration.

“Out of everyone I’ve watched, my sister Sarah inspires me the most,” Kornder said. “She always powers through everything that is stopping her and never lets obstacles stop her from trying to achieve her goals.

“… I got to watch her improve a lot, not just at her motions, but at jumps, tumbling, facials. You name it, Sarah most likely had it.”

The one word that coach Patterson, Gafal and Kornder all used to describe the Warrenton cheerleading program is: “Welcoming.” Gafal recalls how the seniors helped her through a lot of “the nerves” she was feeling during her first year as a cheerleader.

“The seniors at that time would have us do the Hokey Pokey as a way to break the ice,” Gafal said.

As the current captain, she says her leadership style is in taking initiative and helping others. For example, if she notices someone having trouble picking up a part of the routine, she will help them out anyway she can.

For Kornder, the positive and welcoming environment has been a welcome change. She had quit cheerleading, but decided to give it another try.

“When I first started in July, I was so scared because I didn’t know what it would be like, but the team was so welcoming and nice about everything,” Kornder said. “As a freshman on the team I’ve learned so much more than I ever have.”

Kornder also credited cheerleading for helping her to grow as a person.

“I was a lonely little kid who had no confidence before I started cheerleading,” Kornder said. “Throughout the years I spent with Coach Celeste on her team, it helped me build the confidence I have now.”

Cheerleading pluses

For young kids, every sport can offer a plethora of benefits, cheerleading included.

According to Patterson, confidence and leadership, teamwork and trust, discipline and resilience, time management and commitment and belonging or connection — all can be gained through cheerleading.

“I have seen how meaningful that sense of belonging can be,” Patterson said. “Some athletes come to cheer after trying other sports, while others are simply looking for a group where they feel comfortable and accepted. At Warrenton, everyone feels like a family.”

Cheers (and pushups) fire up the fans

For Warrenton, crowd favorite cheers include: Warrior Power, Trucking and Warrior Beat. “One of my personal favorites is ‘Hey Cheerleaders!’ because it gives us the chance to interact directly with our fans.”

In addition, the cheerleaders will sometimes throw out “spirit sticks” filled with candy, shirts and other fun prizes as a way to reward enthusiastic fans. One other popular cheer is called “Pushups for Touchdowns.” This cheer happens every time Warrenton scores a touchdown. The cheerleaders do pushups that correspond with the number of points Warrenton has on the scoreboard, while the crowd counts out each one. For example, if the Warriors score 21 points, the cheerleaders will do 21 pushups consecutively.

During Friday’s game against Amity, however, the score became so high — 53, Warriors, 6, Amity — that the cheerleaders were relieved of that performance.

Final words of cheer

Patterson hopes to see cheerleading continue to grow as a sport across Clatsop County.

“I have always joked of a Clatsop County cheer takeover, so watching local schools bring back their high school cheer teams and seeing youth programs delvelop has been incredibly exciting.

“When I started advocating for cheerleading at Warrenton, my goal was to bring back something I wished I had experienced when I was a student here,” Patterson said. “I never wanted it to be a team that showed up (just) for games. … I wanted to build a program where athletes could grow, challenge themselves, find their people and take pride in representing their community.

“We are building something bigger than a single season or single team. We are building a tradition that I hope future generations of Warriors will continue to carry forward.”

LSU football will get an impact player back in the fold this week when the Tigers face Auburn. Star tight end Trey'Dez Green was absent from LSU's Wednesday night injury report, and ESPN's Pete Thamel reported that "the expectation is that Green will play for the Tigers on Saturday."

Green left LSU's Week 3 loss at Ole Miss with a knee injury and has been sidelined ever since. Green was a Pre-Season All-American, and when he's on the field, he's a game changer for the LSU offense. At 6-foot-7, Green is a matchup nightmare for defenders. Green can win jump balls and has the speed to make plays after the catch.

In three games, Green caught 14 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown. Green is a dangerous threat in the red zone, and he's reliable on third down.

Originally, Green was expected to miss all of October, but the Alabama game was circled as a potential return date after the bye. If Green is ready to go this week, LSU will be glad to get its star tight end back earlier than expected.

NEWS: LSU star tight end Trey'Dez Green isn't listed on the Availability Report for the Auburn game. The expectation is that Green will play for the Tigers on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/9vBX4Y04Lb

Trey’Dez Green is NOT listed on the first injury report for #LSU-Auburn pic.twitter.com/IEMlXhov0E

LSU will face Auburn at 11 A.M. on Saturday, Oct. 24.

This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: Star LSU football tight end expected to return this week

The Green Bay Packers finally returned Josh Jacobs after he spent the past six weeks on the Commissioner’s Exempt List due to him being investigated by the league for a potential personal conduct violation stemming from a domestic incident between him and his then-girlfriend.

With the 28-year old set to practice this week, and with a good chance to return in Week 7 to help improve the Packers’ dire run game, Jacobs spoke to the media for the first time since the incident occurred back on May 23 during Memorial Day weekend.

Jacobs expressed contrition for the situation, whilst also criticizing the length of his six-game suspension, additionally noting that he is “not trying to win nobody back“.

However, the former All-Pro tailback also had some more bizarre comments for the media, including claiming that the entire situation regarding the domestic incident, which saw him arrested and later charged with misdemeanor battery and criminal damage to property, was one of the “best things that ever happened” to him.

#Packers running back Josh Jacobs talked for the first time this season.He said he took time to re-evaluate his life.

"You never wanna be in this situation, but me just being honest, for my life, it was one of the best things that ever happened to me." pic.twitter.com/NbXufMxJnb

— Dominique Yates (@RealDYates) October 21, 2026

Jacobs took accountability for the situation, and recalled how he spent a recent team meeting apologizing to his teammates for bringing unnecessary attention to the team through his off-the-field conduct.

“A lot of guys look up to me, a lot of guys come to me about real life issues and things that go on in their lives…For me I’m just trying to show everybody that I’m not better than the next person, I still deal with my own personal things.” Jacobs said, via the Journal Sentinel’s Dominique Yates.

“The main story for me when we had that meeting was me being apologetic for the attention that was bought to the team, having the guys have to answer or watch what they say when it comes to that, so that’s just something I had to take accountability for.”

The former Raider followed up with comments noting that whilst the situation itself was not a good one, the result of it allowed the Packers running back space to think and get clear-focused on who he wants to be and what he wants his legacy to be, going so far to say that it was one of the “best things” to have happened to him.

“You never want to be in this situation.” Jacobs continued. “But just me being honest; for my life, it was probably one of the best things that ever happened to me. And I say that because it gave me a chance to sit down and re-evaluate what’s important and what I want my life to look like. And what do I want people to know me for when they think of me.”.

From his comments, it is clear where Jacobs is coming from; sometimes it takes a bad moment to help shape one’s life for the better.

But the comment itself certainly lacks self-awareness and empathy for other parties involved: it is unlikely that the victim, Jacobs’ then-girlfriend referred to in court filings as ANM, feels the same way – that it is one of the best things to have happened to her.

To say that publicly, where media scrutiny is as tough as its ever been, is certainly an unorthodox decision for a player whose reputation still hangs in the balance.

This article was originally published on HEAVY

The post Josh Jacobs Makes Tone-Deaf Media Statement In Light of May Arrest appeared first on HEAVY.

It took 257 days after his trade from the Dallas Mavericks, but Anthony Davis has finally made his debut with the Washington Wizards. He looked worth the wait.

The All-NBA big man posted 34 points on 11-of-20 shooting, 12 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals in a runaway 128-116 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.

He got off to a hot start and received MVP chants at Capital One Arena by the end of the first quarter.

MVP chants from Washington's faithful for AD 🗣️

Anthony Davis is off to a hot start in his Wizards debut! https://t.co/N6Rk6JTFdYpic.twitter.com/dbRXhxID07

Those 34 points tied Antawn Jamison in 2004 for the most points in a Wizards debut. It's also the first time someone has begun their Wizards career with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds.

Davis was traded to the Wizards on Feb. 5 earlier this year, ending a tenure with the Dallas Mavericks that might have never had a chance due to the emotions tied to him being the return for the infamous Luka Dončić trade.

The Wizards opted to pick Davis up as a new franchise star alongside Trae Young, with two All-Stars thrown into a young core led by Alex Sarr and Kyshawn George. However, with nothing left to play for when they acquired Davis, Washington sat him for the rest of the season with a hand injury. Young also played only five games as a Wizard before getting shut down.

Young, playing his first minutes alongside his new pick-and-roll partner, posted 20 points on 4-of-13 shooting with 13 assists against 1 turnover.

Washington was playing a Bucks team embarking on its post-Giannis Antetokounmpo era, with new acquisition Tyler Herro pacing the team at 24 points. The Bucks actually led 93-90 at the end of the third quarter, but the Wizards blew them out in the fourth.

Anthony Davis to the Wizards crowd after the and-1 jumper

“I’M LIKE THAT” pic.twitter.com/26gHHVudBj

By comparison, Davis reached 34 points in only two of his 29 games with the Mavericks.

Notably missing from the proceedings was AJ Dybantsa, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2026 NBA Draft. The rookie missed the opener with an ankle injury after rolling his ankle on a shot in preseason.

That likely means the best is yet to come for Washington, who suddenly has two former All-Stars and plenty of high-upside young talent after years in the wilderness.

The other side of Davis' debut is the fact that he's in a contract year, the last leg of a three-year, $175 million contract he originally signed with the Los Angeles Lakers. His representatives and the Wizards opted to table contract talks until the start of the season.

Davis is eligible for an extension worth up to four years and $275 million, a sum the Wizards are likely hesitant to give based on Davis' injury history and 33 years of age.