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Drake Larson

@drakelars14

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Knoxville 26’
Isu 30’
1️⃣4️⃣
@abivl09 ❤️

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Officially signed to @gvudance ❤️🖤

So incredibly grateful to officially be continuing my dance career with a team that already holds such a special place in my heart. Thank you to everyone who has supported me and believed in me along the way.

@elitedancebynicole
@knoxvilledanceteam

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I really dislike golf.

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The story keeps getting better

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Me n the Bhoys

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Made it out the group chat

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We came. We saw. We conquered. #ozarks

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Far off to the west

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“Can’t gain anything without losing something first.” Ozarks 2️⃣6️⃣

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Thank you all #doadwerk #whatsgoingonvlog#2026

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And now we come to our final All-State honoree.

Senior Captain Drake Larson has been named First Team All-State at Center Back and was also selected to participate in the Senior All-Star Game.

Drake embodied everything we hoped this program would stand for: hard work, dedication, toughness, and a downright refusal to quit. He wasn’t just our captain because someone handed him an armband. He earned that title every single day through his actions, his consistency, and the way he loved his teammates.

From the first day of the season to the final whistle, Drake believed we were a State Tournament team. There wasn’t a moment of doubt in his mind. While others wondered if we could get there, Drake simply went to work, fully committed to dragging, pushing, and inspiring his teammates all the way to the promised land.

And that’s leadership, isn’t it? Not convincing people to believe in you, but helping people believe in themselves.

My favorite thing Drake ever told me was, “I love Knoxville soccer. The atmosphere of it. It’s just different.”

Buddy, you’re right. It is different.

And a big reason it’s different is because young men like you poured your heart into making it that way.

First Team All-State. Senior All-Star. Captain for a State Tournament team.

What a final chapter for one heck of a player, an even better leader, and a young man who helped leave Knoxville Soccer in a better place than he found it.

Here’s to you, Captain. Thanks for believing. We followed your lead.

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🚨 Special Announcement 🚨

Senior Captain #14 Drake Larson has returned from family vacation just in time for one more ride in a Knoxville Panther jersey.

Drake has been selected to represent the East Team in the 2026 IAHSSCA Senior Showcase, kicking off today at 2:30 PM at Mediacom Stadium ahead of tonight’s Des Moines Menace match.

If you’ve got a free afternoon, come on out and help us send our captain off the right way. Let’s fill the stands with Panther pride and give Drake one last ovation in black and gold.

Tickets (which get you into all three games) can be found here:

https://iahssca.org/events/senior-showcase

Go enjoy one more afternoon watching a young man who has represented our school, team, and community exactly the way you’d hope a captain would. Proud of you, Drake. Go have some fun, buddy.

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Before we get back to handing out individual awards, I want to take a quick timeout and brag on the whole team for a minute.

This year, 15 of our 19 eligible players earned Academic All-Conference honors.

Now, I love a game-winning goal as much as anybody. Heck, I’ve probably celebrated a few of them hard enough to pull a hamstring. But this right here? This might be my favorite accomplishment of the season.

See, soccer is a funny game. Eventually the final whistle blows for all of us. The trophies collect dust, the jerseys get tucked away and the scoreboards get forgotten. But what stays with you is what’s between your ears and the habits you build along the way.

To have all 11 starters and 4 players off the bench earn Academic All-Conference is downright incredible. That doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because of discipline, hard work and a commitment to doing things the right way even when nobody’s watching.

It also says a whole lot about the village behind these young men; the parents who support them, the teachers who challenge them and the people who help them become the best versions of themselves.

As coaches, we spend a lot of time talking about building great players. The truth is, we’re trying to build great people. This group makes that job pretty easy.

Fifteen Academic All-Conference honorees. That’s something special.

Proud of you, Bhoys. Keep being curious, keep working hard and keep proving that being smart is pretty darn cool.

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