Check it out!Check it out!Look at the back cover Look at the back cover

for a calendar for a calendar of upcoming events!of upcoming events!

Letters to the editor can be Letters to the editor can be of any length of any length

on any topic. They may be on any topic. They may be edited for length edited for length

or libelous content.or libelous content.Letters to the editor Letters to the editor

are accepted are accepted in room 220.in room 220.

Editors-in-ChiefCarol Beth Jones Anna Robertson

Co-EditorSarah Anne Edwards

Assistant EditorsWilliam Lay

Kaitlyn Turney Mandy Yates

Design EditorDavid Grueser

Business EditorShelley Lemon

Assistant Business EditorHannah Chapman

Business StaffAmber Donaldson

Adam FordKatie Taylor

Production ManagersKristen Kerr

James Northcutt

Archives and Exchange ManagersAndrew Lay

Madison Johnson

Circulation ManagerAllyson Agee

Circulation StaffJeffrey Dycus Jaylin Gardner

Johnnie Mack Stephens

Opinion Page ManagerWill Bumpas

Sports ManagerAndrew Ford

Fashion ManagersCatherine Hamilton Brooke Stegeman

Staff CartoonistJohnnie Mack Stephens

Video Yearbook EditorsJames Guttery

Erin Naifeh

Video Yearbook StaffAnna Claire Bradshaw

Jaylin Gardner Cole Smith

Kaitlyn Turney Mandy YatesAlex Jacobi

Sydnee Stafford

AdvisorsSuzanne Edwards

Nancy Speck

Trojan TorchDyersburg High School125 Hwy. 51 By-PassDyersburg, TN 38024

Trojan

TTABLEABLE OFOF CCONTENTSONTENTS

PGS. 3-4 NEWS

PGS. 10-11 FEATURES

PGS. 6-7 EDITORIAL

PG. 12 SPORTS

PGS. 14-15 ENTERTAINMENT

New dress code, Mandarin classes,

Scope finalists, Bhuttos assassinationReligion in government, Dress code,

Music courses

Jack Johnson, National Treasure, Elis Doghouse,Sweet Peppers

Recycling, Spring fashion, College websites,

Teachers who go aboveTennis, Sports shorts

Anew opportunity is coming to Dyers-burg High School: Mandarin is goingto be offered as a new foreign lan-

guage.“It is very different and will be very chal-

lenging,” curriculum coordinator Kim Wor-ley said. “There will be two teachers that willactually be from China teaching our studentsthe basics.”

Although it may seem Dyersburg HighSchool is the only school taking part in thistransaction, there are other schools all overthe nation moving towards Mandarin.

“It will jumpstart us academically. It will bereally good for our school,” junior Matt Cokersaid.

“We want the school to be more world-ori-ented and involved. We want our students tobe able to compete with other students fromall over the world and be just as wellequipped or better. Mandarin is one of themost spoken languages in the world and willbe a connection to jobs for our students, jobspast just the town of Dyersburg,” Worleysaid.

“It will give students more options, not justin school but in the real world,” senior RachelMcCollum said.

There will be challenges, and offering Man-darin will be a new direction for DyersburgHigh, but that is exactly what the administra-tors are looking for. As for the students whoplan to take Mandarin, they are very excitedabout the change.

“I want to challenge myself to a differentlanguage, something new,” freshmanD’Neishe Grant said.

Offering Mandarin was a carefully consid-ered choice. Contacting the University ofMichigan, the administrators began lookingfor teachers who could teach Mandarin. Thiswas the beginning of the process our schoolhad to go through.

“The teachers will arrive to the UnitedStates in April and go through training andreceive supplies for teaching in Michigan.Then the teachers will arrive at DyersburgHigh School in June,” Worley said.

“It is a good idea because it gives people abetter opportunity to learn what is outsidethe school,” freshman Brigitte Anderson said.

This change is all about growth and change.It is one step helping the students becomebetter equipped once they leave this school.

“We cannot teach our students how towork, but we can give them building blocksor tools to use when they work,” Worley says.

jaylin gardner

3TrojanTorch Volume 40 Issue 5News

The 2008-2009 school year will be filledwith lots of big changes at our school.The biggest difference in our daily

school lives will be the new dress code thathas been proposed by the school board andadministration: “Students shall dress in aclean, neat and modest manner so as not todistract or interfere with the operation of theschool day.”

“The purpose of the new dress code willbe to create an orderly setting in whichteaching and learning can occur withoutdistraction and to help young people pre-pare for the world of work,” principalMickey Mahon said.

The new dress code will consist of collaredshirts, no sweat pants and no rubber beachshoes. Also sweatshirts worn must be affili-ated with the school, a college or an organi-zation and must not be offensive.

“In ----my opinion, I think a new dresscode would be great; girls will look classier,and boys will look more intelligent,” juniorJade Caldwell said.

“I think the new clothes will take awayfrom people’s individuality. I also do notthink we should get a new dress code, eventhough the one we have now is not en-forced,” freshman Cade Harrington said.

“I do not like the idea of collared shirts,but then again everyone would look nicer.If we cannot wear flip-flops, that will causea problem among girls around the timeschool starts and ends when it’s warm out-side,” sophomore Caitlin Armstrong said.

“I like the idea of having to wear collaredshirts just as long as the administration does

not get too strict about it. The one we havenow should be enforced, but we need achange around here,” sophomore Matt Jen-nings said.

“If we get a new dress code, it would takea whole lot of weight off of people’s shoul-ders, especially girls, stressing about whatthey are going to wear that day,” juniorSharetha Haynes said.

“I would rather have a uniform than astricter dress code. Keep the old dress code,just make some adjustments to it,” freshmanHannah Austin said.

The discipline rules of the dress code willbecome more strict also. The consequencesof breaking the dress code will consist ofparent calls, detentions, Saturday schools,ISS and even alternative school.

Administrators can designate school spiritdays. This means that the administrationwill approve of students getting to wearschool-rel ated, homecoming and class t-shirts but only on certain days. Students willstill get to dress-up during homecomingweek.

The school administrator will make thefinal decision about whether an article orstyle of dress falls outside the new guide-lines. Dyersburg City Schools must be envi-ronments in which academic work can beaccomplished by the teachers and students.

“I would like to see our students dressneater and wear clothes as they were meantto be worn. I hope that the students wouldwork at making this new change success-ful,” Mahon said.

anna claire bradshaw

New

Mandarin

coursebrings

changesto

traditionallearning

New dress code under consideration

Clothes and conflicts: Michael Nguyen, left, would be out of uniform undernext years standards. Brandon Smith, on the right, would be acceptable.

Photo by Sarah Anne Edwards

On December 27,2007, Americanswere given the

news that Benazir Bhuttohad been assassinated. Shehad been killed while rid-ing in an open-top car. Shewas campaigning for theupcoming election in Pak-istan. Many heard her namefor the first time when theyheard about her death.

Bhutto was a two-timeformer prime minister ofPakistan and held a rare po-sition of prominence for awoman in an Islamic cul-ture.

A progressive thinker whostudied in England, Bhuttowas a frequent figure inWashington D.C. and well-known by many prominentAmerican politicians in-cluding Hillary Clinton.

Benazir Bhutto had re-cently returned to Pakistanto run against the incum-bent and often criticizedMusharraf. She admittedthat she believed his partywanted her dead and thatshe was in danger, but shefelt convicted to help hercountry.

One question has beenraised by her death and the

ensuing turmoil the coun-try has fallen into. Whichpresidential candidate isbest qualified to deal withinternational hostilities andunrest of this kind?

In a survey of DyersburgHigh School students, MikeHuckabee was the leadingfigure. Behind him by a nar-row margin of 2% werethose students who wereundecided about whowould be the best leader.Obama was third, and Clin-ton finished fourth.

But a closer look at thenumbers showed some-thing else. The majority ofthose in the survey who ac-tually knew who Bhuttowas and pay attention to in-ternational news and affairswere those undecidedabout which presidentialcandidate would be thebest.

This shows that the major-ity of voters do not look atthe issues when they maketheir decision. They simplyvote by party, race or gen-der. This is a common issueamong free societies.

cole smith

4 Issue 5 TrojanTorchNewsVolume 40

Bhuttos death causes uneasiness for Americans

This year four students havebeen honored with theprivilege of attending

SCOPE. These students are juniorHannah Chapman, junior Susan-nah Finley, sophomore JaylinGardner and sophomore FinleyWhite.

Being chosen to go to SCOPE isan honor among students. Whenat SCOPE, students pretend to beon the school board. Each grouphas a topic that they must debateon as if they are members of aschool board. The students willbe faced with topics such as “howto prevent teen pregnancy inyour school” and “should everymember of a sports team be drugtested?”. Each student mustknow how to address and debatethe issue. The students goingknow how to get the job done.

“I don’t mind selling my opin-ion but I listen well,” Jaylin Gard-ner said.

“I’m looking forward to havinga say in decisions facing educa-tion,” Finley White said.

Each student will be faced withdifficult decisions; they will berated by the other members oftheir group. If the student ad-dresses the situation the right

way, she will have the chance torun for president for next year.

“I don’t plan on running thisyear because I don’t know muchabout SCOPE right now,” Whitesaid.

“Since I am returning I think Iwill consider running for presi-dent,” Susannah Finley said.

Attending SCOPE will not onlyhelp each student on issueswithin schools but also help thestudents bond while they makethe trip together.

“I think it will be a very awe-some experience hanging out,bonding and getting to now peo-ple for who they are,” Gardnersaid.

“I am excited about the groupof girls going. I can’t wait to getto know all of them. This will bea great bonding experience andalso a good way to learn aboutthe school board,” Hannah Chap-man said.

SCOPE is a good way to meetnew friends and learn how theschool board really works.

“I am so honored to be chosenfor this event. I can’t wait forSCOPE!” Chapman said.sarah anne edwards

Four

stu

dent

s re

adily

aw

ait S

CO

PEPhotos by Sarah Anne Edwards

Leading DHS to a brighter future: Juniors Hannah Chapmanand Susannah Finley and sophmores Jaylin Gardner and Finley White were chosen as SCOPErepresentatives.

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Religion in itself is the practice of beliefs. Beliefsare noted as ideas one holds to be true. TheUnited States government openly states that

free speech of such ideas is allowed in our amazingcountry founded on liberty, freedom.....and God?Maybe or maybe not.

Once upon a time in the small region that would be-come America, there were many Pilgrims who wantedto escape religious persecution. These people hatedthe fact that they were limited in their religious pur-suit, so they came to the New World to worship asthey saw fit. However, many people today are mis-taken in their knowledge of the foundation of this ter-ritory. America was not founded on the Christian beliefs ofthe Pilgrims. The Pilgrimswanted religious freedom, sotherefore, they did not con-fine the boundaries of ourfair nation within the princi-ples of God.

The first motto of theUnited States was “EPluribus Unum,” whichmeans “one from many.” Themotto refers to the joining of the thirteen originalcolonies into what is now a single, united nation. Itwas not until 1864, however, that the motto “In GodWe Trust” was added as a statement on the face ofcoins. America, a once secular nation, was moving to-ward the opposite pole.

But it did not stop there. In 1918, the patriotic song“God Bless America” was written and became the un-official anthem for America. In the 1950s, Congress ap-proved that the phrase “Under God” was to be addedto the Pledge of Allegiance. In 1956, the motto “In GodWe Trust” replaced the original, ”E Pluribus Unum.”

So, where is all this going? The earlier proof readsthat America was originally a secular nation. Overtime religion began to intertwine with the governmentvia Congress. Now, the government wants to take re-ligion away again. What is a nation to do?

Currently about 75 percent of Americans profess tobe Christian-affiliated. Why should an entire nation

change its political standards to satisfy the opinionsof a few? No matter what the government does, some-one is always going to be unhappy. It should mattermore to the government to please most of the countryrather than find a nonexistent compromise with thefew who disagree.

The government’s decisions regarding our fair na-tion reflect also on the education system. The firstamendment of the United States reads, “Congressshall make no law respecting an establishment of reli-gion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” How-ever, by dismissing prayer in school as a moment ofsilence, prohibiting talk of religion by teachers and notallowing the Pledge of Allegiance to be spoken vio-

lates our rights as citizens offree speech.

Several time-consuming is-sues are also problems thatexist with changing our gov-ernment to being completelysecular. For example, the un-official anthem of the UnitedStates, “God Bless America,”would have to be completely

changed, since God is the focus of the entire song.Also the motto of our nation would have to be ad-justed, and a whole new currency would have to beintroduced, without the phrase “In God We Trust” in-scribed. Is all that effort worth gaining the approvalof minority religious groups?

The United States government is currently unde-cided on the issue of God in our country as are manyof its citizens. Taking God out of our whole societyand day-to-day routines would have a disastrous ef-fect on our great nation and take a huge amount of ef-fort. God most definitely belongs in our society,especially since most people in the United Statesopenly profess to be Christians. Our governmentshould throw any idea of such change out the windowand continue on their merry way to organize our fairnation and the more important issues that matter toEVERYBODY.

katie taylor

Is America justified in idea ofcreating secular government?

6 Issue 5 TrojanTorchEditorialsVolume 40

Photo by Katie Taylor

Uniforms....a word feared by five year olds and high schoolersalike. What will be the outcome to this dreadful phenomenon?What effects will erupt from the school district’s decision? Al-

though the final decision has not been made, the rumors have sparkeda sense of insecurity.

The school board is wanting to enforce a new dress code. The rulesand regulations pertain to people’s wear and attire. But is there a limitto how far the dress code should go?

Enforcing a new dress code will be too much for students and theschool system to handle at once. Think about the dress code now, is itbeing enforced, is it being followed word for word? The answer, un-fortunately, is NO. Sagging of the pants and unsightly clothes, not ap-propriate for anyone, flood our school. Some teachers do not even tellthe students about their disobedience to the rules. Why should a neweven more strict code be enforced if the code is not being followednow?

Drug abuse, obscene language, vandalism and disrespectful atti-

tudes, what about these problems that are being avoided? It seems sillyto go to the extreme about our clothes when more serious issues arearising.

Why punish those who follow the rules when the punishment couldbe more harsh? The reason many of the rules are overlooked are be-cause the rules are not taken seriously. Take the rules to the edge andmake the consequences for those who rebel more extreme. Then theinnocent will not be oppressed, and the wrong will be whipped backinto shape.

Freedom of expression will no longer be existent. What will becomeof the day when people could wear their personalities and be them-selves?

Then what will happen when money becomes a block in the road?Not everyone can afford to run to Wal-Mart and buy a new wardrobe.If the school wants to enforce it, then the school should supply uni-forms. Why go waste money on stuff we do not want?

staff editorial

The San Francisco Conservatoryof Music, Juilliard and the NewEngland Conservatory of Music

are among the prestigious musicschools for aspiring artists across theglobe. While these names may ring abell, does the thought ever come upproposing the question: what does ittake for students to get there? The an-swer is years of practicing and privatelessons as well as classes in theory,music history, music appreciation andorchestra.

There is only one problem. Dyers-burg High School offers a minimumnumber of courses in music. In the cur-riculum, two courses pertain to music,band and choir.

In reality, how should a student fromthe rural Dyersburg area with little tono training in music other than privatelessons be expected to make it to thesetop-performing conservatories?

Would it not look good for the schoolto have a student from DHS attendsomewhere as notable as Juilliard?

While it is true that some studentprodigies are born with the innate giftof music, they too require some formaltraining and courses in order to reachtheir full potential.

With the limited number of musiccourses at DHS, students interested inmusic are also limited when it comesto choices of schools.

Many schools offer courses such asmusic theory or AP music theory,

music history, music appreciation andmore. Basic courses in piano may alsobe offered at schools. Schools that offerthese courses to students provide theirstudents with an advantage over stu-dents without these courses.

Rebuttals may easily be made on theneed for increased music courses. Whois going to teach the new classes?While it is true our current instructorsin the arts venue may be busy, is thereno one else in the community whocould be hired to come in and helpteach?

Many people play the piano well inDyersburg, and I do not see the reasonwhy we can not offer a course in basicor beginner piano studies.

Out of the entire city, surely someoneis capable of teaching a basic theory ormusic appreciation course. The leastwe could do is place an ad in the paperto find someone to teach some of thesecourses. If no one takes up the offer,then at least an effort was made.

Those who do not understand whythis is even an important issue withany value prove my point for the needof a music appreciation class. If a stu-dent has not been exposed to any clas-sical music, then she may not knowwhat she is missing out on.

Dyersburg High School should seri-ously consider adding more of thesecourses to the curriculum.

adam ford

Lack

of m

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cau

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for m

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Making Music: Juniors Ben Jamesand Jake Gulledge practice percussionpieces during band practice hours.

Photo by Adam Ford

7TrojanTorch Volume 40 Issue 5Editorials

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10 Issue 5 TrojanTorchFeaturesVolume 40

Stuck in a winter stylerut? Do not worry,spring is just around

the corner, and this is yourchance to freshen up yourlook.

Spring is all about new be-ginnings, so this is the per-fect time for a completestyle transformation. Startby organizing your closet. Ifyou know exactly what youhave, it will be much easierto put together new outfitswith the pieces you alreadyown. You will also be ableto tell what things you stillneed to complete yourwardrobe. This will makespring shopping a breeze.

Finding a store with cuteclothes at a reasonable pricecan be a headache. Forever21 and Old Navy carrytrendy clothes at greatprices. Stock up on all theircheap spring tops. It issmart to spend more moneyon expensive jeans, skirtsand dress pants.These willhold up better and you canpair them with all of yourdifferent less-expensive

tops. This will give youmany new outfit possibili-ties. Trouser jeans are thisyear’s skinny jeans. Lookfor a dark-washed pair thatwill instantly dress-up allyour spring tops.

Say goodbye to boringwinter colors and hello tospring’s new brights. Ca-nary yellow, kelly green,blue and hot pink will bethis season’s most popularcolors. Pair lime green, yel-low and pink together for atrendy look that clashes in agood way.

Since you will be wearingbright-colored clothing,your make-up should belight and sheer. Look forpink shimmery make-up asa trend for spring 2008. An-other color combinationthat will be popular iscream, coco and poppy.

For spring 2008, do not beafraid to go out of yourstyle comfort zone andwear this season’s electricbrights. brooke stegeman

Recycling helps the envi-ronment, and that is afact. It lowers landfills,

saves natural resources, con-serves energy and adds jobs to theeconomy. So why, then, does Dyers-burg not have a recycling program?

Dyersburg and Dyer County havenot put forth a serious effort to estab-lish a recycling center.

“The people of Dyersburg and DyerCounty know that a recycling programneeds to happen,” Dyer County MayorRichard Hill said.

New Bremen, Ohio, a town similar toDyersburg, has been able to sustain arecycling program since the 1960’s.The local Boy Scouts began the pro-gram first by recycling old newspa-pers. Now that verysame program recyclestypes 1 and 2 plastic,plastic bags, aluminum,computer parts, steelcans, batteries, card-board, three colors ofglass, shoes and, ofcourse, newspaper.

The recycling pro-gram in New Bremencame about when the city passed anordinance stating that the local wastemanagement will only pick up certainyellow trash bags. These trash bagswere sold at a higher price than nor-mal trash bags. This was an effort tolower landfills and diminish New Bre-men’s carbon footprint. Making citi-zens pay per bag of trash kicked therecycling program up from only news-paper to what it is today.

The way they accomplished this isthat once a month a known drop-offday is assigned on which members of

the community can dropoff their recyclable goods. Eightmonths out of the year the Girl Scoutsmanage it, and the other four aremanned by the Boy Scouts.

“Even though it is a volunteer effort,some money is raised. It is similar to afund-raiser,” New Bremen Scoutleader Ruth Brookhart said.

In order to limit the amount of un-wanted “trash,” the community edu-cates the public as to what is and is notrecyclable.

Companies can also take advantageof the benefits of becoming “green.”

“Our company (pop-ular shirt producerPhillips/ Van Heusen)has separate bins in thebreakrooms into whichwe can sort aluminum,paper, plastic and glass.We also switched overto using recycled paperin copiers and printersand we have water

coolers in place of water bottles.”Phillips/ Van Huesen warehousingdepartment employee Chris Forbessaid.

More and more communities acrossthe country are becoming environmen-tally conscious. The benefits will affectnot only our generation, but genera-tions to come. For additional recyclingquestions, call 1-800-345-4242 or visith t t p : / / w w w . r e c y c l i n g -revolution.com.

david grueser

Spring fashions bloomwith this season’s electric brights

Recycling: The way to a brighter future

Photo courtesy of epa.govPhotos courtesy of Forever 21

Having trouble find-ing what to do forcollege? There are

numerous websites to helpyou find a college andsearch for scholarships andfinancial aid. Many of thesewebsites also help youthink of majors or careers.

Tennessee College and Ca-reer Planning System’swww.planningyourdreams.orgallows you to search for anykind of scholarships avail-able and provides tons ofcareer information in Ten-nessee. It also refers you tofinancial aid programs andcollege websites.

Tennessee Career Infor-mation Delivery System-Career’s search center attcids.tbr.edu lets you take aninterest survey, which se-lects certain career fields foryou. You can also view theTennessee Career of theWeek and search throughall careers as well as take asurvey to guide you to col-leges and other institutions.

ecampustours.com informsyou about student grantprograms and federal stu-dent loans. You can alsoenter to win a $1000 schol-arship, and it tells youabout free stuff for schools.

collegeboard.com helps youplan for college, find a col-lege, apply to a college and

pay for college. It also pro-vides you with informationabout the SAT and PSAT.

Black Excel’s www.blackex-cel.com lists hundreds ofscholarships available tocertain minority groups. Itincludes various scholar-ships you would not eventhink of, such as the BurgerKing Scholarship Program.

Scholarships.com mightsound somewhat genericbut provides users withlinks to literally millions ofscholarships and grants.On this website you fill outa short questionnaire, and itmatches you up with a listof scholarships available toyou.

www.selectingcolleges.comis a website that tells youhow to look for scholar-ships and what to do to en-sure getting them. It is moreof a background informa-tion website rather than onethat provides links to schol-arships.

studentaid2.ed.gov is a gov-ernment website that al-lows you to view theadvantages and disadvan-tages of using certain meth-ods to select a college. Italso helps you find collegesbased on preferences suchas type, size or campus life.james northcutt

Websites for collegesearch that actually help

The role of the teacher in moderneducation is to help studentsachieve an understanding of a

subject or field of study. This requiresan immense amount of patience,knowledge and dedication from theteachers. Some teachers have gone theextra mile to ensure that their studentsget a first-rate education.

Some teachers go above and be-yond the call of duty by taking grad-uate classes. These courses are notrequired by the school system and arecompleted on the teacher’s personaltime. These classes aid the teachers inmany ways. “It has given me betterinsights into different leadershipstyles and how those styles affectpeople differ-ently,” said historyteacher Jeff Gol-son.Graduate classes

also keep teachersup to date on thelatest develop-ments in theirareas of study. “Be-cause what I teachhas changed dra-matically over thelast five years, if Ididn’t take a class Iwould be an an-tique,” said biol-ogy teacherDeborah Gatlin.This extra effort also gives the teach-ers additional information, whichused to teach students more effec-tively.

Many teachers also attend work-shops to learn new skills and activi-ties to help improve their class’slearning environment. These work-shops are offered several times eachyear.

All teachers also attend in-servicetraining, where DHS administratorsand regional and national educationalspecialists inform the teachers aboutthe newest changes in school policy,educational requirements and how towork better with students. This train-ing brings a new, improved outlook toeducation.

Some of our teachers go above andbeyond in other ways. Englishteacher Suzanne Edwards and geog-raphy teacher Neel Durbin are bothA.P. exam readers. Durbin is also anA.P. consultant. Golson recentlymade a presentation to the NationalCouncil for Social Studies in California.

Teachers also doa great deal ofwork behind thescenes. Manynights and after-noons are spentgrading hundredsof quizzes or read-ing dozens of es-says. Teachers alsocome to schoolearly on some daysfor early duty andstay late for lateduty. Every paperor worksheet stu-dents receive hadto be either writtenor located in a

book and then copied. This takes a lotof time and dedication from theteachers.

In graduate classes, workshops, be-hind the scenes and many otherways, teachers go above and beyondto ensure that each one of their stu-dents receives a quality education.

william lay

11TrojanTorch Volume 40 Issue 5Features

Helping Students: Neel Durbinputs forth the extra effort to ensurestudents success.

Researching: Senior Courtney Mason checks outcollege websites for different opportunities.

Teachers go aboveand beyond to providegood education

Photo by William Lay

Photo by Anna Robertson

12 Issue 5 TrojanTorchSportsVolume 40

With warmerweather ap-proaching, the

tennis team is preparing toserve up a great season thisspring.

Neel Durbin, the tennisteam’s coach, expects tohave about sixteen boys andtwenty girls play on theteam.

Durbin’s expectations forthe team are to have boththe girls and boys in thehunt for the district title.

Of course, every team isfaced with obstacles theyhave to overcome, and USJis one of them. “USJ is astate powerhouse in our re-gion. To win a match withthem would be great,”Durbin said.

The district schedule ishow the team chooses whothey will play against.

To be fair to the players,everyone gets to participatein the games.

Preparation for the gamesrequires practice. The play-ers practice Mondaythrough Thursday at the

Community Center. Thepractices are usually from3:30 to 5:30. “The team usu-ally just practices the nor-mal fun stuff,” Durbin said.

“It is really fun and I havebeen on the team sincefreshman year. Our girls’team will be really good thisyear because the team hascollected a lot of matureplayers,” senior tennisplayer Sarah Houston said.

“Making this year differ-ent from the past yearswould be winning a fewmore matches and havingas much fun as before,”Durbin said.

“We had a really goodteam last year, and we aregetting some new playersthat will give a lot to theteam. I am so excited aboutthis year!” senior tennisplayer Sarah Anne Edwardssaid.

“We enjoy the sport andthe students get to developa lifelong skill,” Durbinsaid.

catherine hamilton

The NFL’s 87th year of exis-tence was marked with greatgames, pleased fans and a cli-

mactic finish. Super Bowl XLII in-volved two very different teams,with two very different stories.

The New England Patriots cameinto the game with lots of hype andan unparalleled 18-0 record. Theirdrive to the Super Bowl left no op-ponents and few NFL records intact.

The Giants, on the other hand,were coming into the Super Bowlwith an 8-8 season record. The teambanded together and fought theirway from a wild card slot into theSuper Bowl. Super Bowl XLII wasone of the most hyped Super Bowlsin recent history. The game was anail-biter with the Giants winningthe title with a drive late in the 4thquarter. This game also had severalfar-reaching effects on the league.

First, the Super Bowl showed howcompetitive the NFL has become.An 8-8 team, who entered the play-offs with a wild-card slot, won overan undefeated team whom manythought invincible. This shows thatany team can be beaten anywhere atany time.

Second, the title of “The World’sBest Ever Football Team” is still upfor debate. If the Patriots hadcapped off their record-breaking

season with a win in the SuperBowl, then few could have arguedthe superiority of past teams.

The 2007-2008 season has also seenan emergence of several new tal-ented players and the resurgence ofseveral older ones. Adrian Petersoncapped off a fantastic rookie seasonwith the Vikings with an MVPaward in the Pro Bowl. Eli Manningfinally lived up to his family namewith the Super Bowl XLII MVPaward. Eli’s efforts at the end of thisseason are one of the primary rea-sons that the Lombardi Trophy willspend 2008 in New York. New Eng-land receiver Wes Welker also hadan unexpected breakout season.Welker, cut from the San DiegoChargers in 2004, left an under-achieving Miami Dolphins team tobecome one of Patriot quarterbackTom Brady’s primary targets.Welker tied Bengal’s receiver T. J.Houshmandzadeh for the most re-ceptions in the 2007-2008 season,and tied the Super Bowl record of 11receptions in a single game in thePatriots' 17-14 loss to the Giants inSuper Bowl XLII.

All in all, the 2007-2008 NFL sea-son and Super Bowl XLII gave fansa year of first-class playing on thefield and a positive point of view forthe 2008-2009 season.

Durbin has highexpectations for tennis team Photos by Trojan Torch staff

Serving it up: Juniors Hannah Chapman andAllison Palmer strive for perfect form as theypractice their tennis skills on the tennis court.

Photo by Sarah Anne Edwards

First United Methodist Church100 McGaughey St.

P.O. Box 452Dyersburg, TN

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Philip A. Cook, Minister

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Dyersburg, TN285-3671

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Jack Johnson has once again recorded another surfer'sdream. His new album, Sleep Through the Static, was re-leased on February 5, 2008. This has been a much antici-

pated album for all Johnson fans. His most popular album, InBetween Dreams, released on March 1, 2005, had people every-where singing along to "can't you see that it's just rainin', thereain't no need to go outside." Johnson's new album keeps thelaid back feel of old but adds a little zest of electric guitar. No,sorry, this is not another Skynyrd, but Johnson's style is a littleedgier. Johnson still has the soothing vocals and rhythmic gui-tar that keeps the feet tapping.

Instrumention is not the only thing that is different aboutthis album. Production was significantly changed. In the past,Johnson has recorded his albums in Hawaii. Yet this time,Johnson is going trying to be more conservative by usingL.A.'s Solar Powered Plastic Plant. He is also a member of FSC(Forest Stewardship Council) which promotes the use recycla-ble forest resources.

To Johnson lovers, this album is a great listen. Although, fornewcomers, this album probably is not the one to start with,In Between Dreams, an older album, is. Many of the new songsare not totally outstanding, but one who likes the Hawaiian,"sittin' on the beach" chill music, this is definitely the albumto choose.

david grueser

Treasure maps, clues, secret passageways, code words,car chases and squealing tires are among the elementsof excitement in National Treasure: Book of Secrets.

The action-packed film is rated PG, which means it is familyfriendly. It is a relatively long movie, lasting just over twohours.

The motion picture be-gins with treasure hunterBen Gates, the featurecharacter played by Nico-las Cage, looking to provehis great-grandfather's,Thomas Gates’, innocencein the assassination ofAbraham Lincoln. ThomasGates is accused of being aconspirator in the assassi-nation when a missingpage from the John WilkesBooth diary is broughtforth by Booth's great-grandson Mitch Wilkin-son, Ed Harris. Mitch is theantagonist in the film.

Mitch chases Benthroughout the movie trying to stop him from proving hisgreat-grandfather's innocence. Ben's partners in trying to dis-cover the treasure are Riley Poole and Abigail Chase. Riley,Justin Bartha, is a humorous character with a great personalitywho often does most of the work for Ben. Abigail, played byDiane Kruger, is Ben's wife who is just as anxious to find thetreasure as Ben is.

Other key characters include Emily Appleton and PatrickGates, Ben's divorced parents who quarrel constantly. HellenMirren stars as Ben's mother, and Jon Voight stars as his father.Every character fits his role perfectly.

The movie is filmed in several places around the globe in-cluding Paris, France; London, England; and a myriad of stopsin the United States. From breaking into Buckingham Palaceto kidnapping the President, this motion picture is full of jaw-dropping action.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets is an outstanding film thatgets a five out of five stars. The writer schemed up an ingen-ious plot that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats waitingfor the next twist or turn. The film is an incredible sequel tothe first National Treasure and is much better.

andrew ford

14 Issue 5 TrojanTorchEntertainmentVolume 40

National Treasure:National Treasure:Book of SecretsBook of Secretsseeks all audiences

Photo courtesy of imdb.com

Photo by David Grueser

There’s a new dog in town-Eli’s Dog House comes to Dyersburg

15TrojanTorch Volume 40 Issue 5Entertainment

Who let the dogsout? Who, who,who, who, Eli!

There’s a new hot dog standin town, Eli’s Dog House.The new restaurant openedJanuary 2, 2008. “I was look-ing for something different,unique and fun. People like agreat atmosphere,” saidShannon Walker, owner andemployee of the restaurant.

When diners first walk in,they are brought back to a‘50s diner. From black andwhite photos to records onthe wall and a typical dinercounter, this restaurant is fullof character.

Diners can choose from 1/4or 1/2 pound All Meat, Pol-ish, All Beef, or Red Hot fla-vors. The hot dogs are so bigbecause “people will remem-ber large quantities. It’s eye-catching, much likeLambert’s Cafe,” Walkersaid.

The Dog House is home toseveral unique hot dogs.Grand Dave’s Red Hot is anold fashioned red hot dogloaded with mustard, chiliand kraut. Bob’s Chili Dog isa giant hot dog loaded withchili, melted cheddar andchopped onions. Pizza Dog isa hot dog smothered withpizza sauce, Italian seasoningand mozzarella cheese; pep-peroni is optional. BLT is ahot dog covered with bacon,

lettuce, tomato and MiracleWhip. Aloha is a hot dogwith fresh mango relish andshredded cheddar cheese.

Other choices are the Dogfor Two, the Vicious Dog andthe Yard Dog. The Dog forTwo is any 1/2 pound dogwith chips and two drinks.The Vicious Dog is a dog cov-ered with the signature bar-beque sauce, sport peppers,jalapenos, melted cheese andtopped with special season-ing. The Yard Dog containsthree all-meat foot-long dogswith toppings, three ordersof fries and a drink. If eatenin 15 minutes, the meal is freeand a free t-shirt is given tothe customer.

If one does not like hotdogs, there are many otheritems to choose from.Chicken salad sandwiches,kids’ pizza, loaded nachos,cheese nachos and chilicheese nachos are a few itemsthat non--hot dog eatersmight enjoy.

One might enjoy a hothoney bun or the dailydessert special for dessert.

Parties can also be bookedfor the evening. The restau-rant is open for lunch from 10AM to 2 PM, Mondaythrough Saturday. Eli’s DogHouse is located at 841 SouthMain across from DairyQueen.

shelley lemon

There is a new restau-rant in Dyersburg! Al-though many times

people complain about thelack of variety and newnessin food choices, never fear,Dyersburg is progressing!Sweet Pepper’s Deli openedJanuary 8, 2008.

As the name implies, it is adeli; not mentioned in thetitle, though, is the wide va-

riety of food at a very afford-able price.

Tasty appetizers, creativesalads, scrumptious sand-wiches, delicious paninis andwraps, fabulous soups anddelectable desserts make upthe extraordinary menu.

There is a kid’s menu forthose cute youngsters or alight snack. A Liteline is alsoavailable for those who arewatching their weight andwant something especiallyhealthy.

Although the fantastic foodmakes this deli tasty, the in-expensive prices are whatmake it a winner. The mostexpensive thing on the menuis only $7.99, which is inex-pensive for the quantity andquality of the food. For a

$1.09, you can get a freshbaked cookie, which is thecheapest item available.

The atmosphere and serviceare warm, casual and recep-tive. After ordering the mealat the counter and going to atable of choice, a waiter willthen bring your order. Thewaiters are helpful and hos-pitable and will bring refillsand a complimentary pep-

permint.The deli also is a

free Wi-Fi hotspot.So if you don’t feellike feasting on a de-licious meal, youcan sit and hang outwith friends whileplaying on the com-puter, all within ashopping center.

Sweet Pepper’s islocated in the Dyersburgmall, across from Applebee’s.It has its own entrance, soyou can go to the restaurantmore conveniently. The deliopens at 11 a.m. and closes at10p.m. Sunday throughThursday, and 11 p.m. on Fri-

day and Saturday.Sweet Pepper’s is a place

where you leave feelinghappy, satisfied and healthy--not gross or unhealthy likeeating fatty fast food. It isgeared toward a younger au-dience, but it is still enjoyedby people of all ages. Overall,Sweet Pepper’s is tasty, inex-pensive and fulfilling. I giveit as close to five stars youcan get without gettingburnt.hannah chapmanSw

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Photo by Hannah Chapman

Photo by Hannah Chapman

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March March

**Baseball Easter Slam Tournament**

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AprilApril

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11

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****** Cheerleading Tryouts******

*Baseball tournament*

Soccer atHaywood

5:30JV BB

Houston High 10am/12:30

BB atTroy@ 7

SB at 6:30 @home

BB @ home6:30

G.Tennisat home @ 4

Baseball @ 6:30

BB@AlamoSB@home

Soccer@CovingtonTennis@home

Tennis @homeSoccer @homeBasketball

Banquet SB Tournament@South Haven

BB@homeat 6:30

BB@So.PemisotJV-11 V-1

BB@NewbernSB@home Report Cards

go out

Spring BreakBegins

Spring break ends

Chess BreakSeniors Justin Tarpley, Rashad Taylor and

Quinton Spence play chess in Amy Morgan’shomeroom at a free moment. Students are

playing chess everywhere. Unrolling flexible boards or whipping out a

board from their backpacks, students are takingup a new interest at DHS.

CCOOMMEE OOUUTT AANNDD SSUUPPPPOORRTT TTHHEE TTRROOJJAANNSS.. .. ..