Friday Flyover: Kaneland High School
MAPLE PARK, Ill. (WLS) -- This week, we feature Kaneland High School on ABC7's Friday Flyover, celebrating high school sports!
PHOTOS: Kaneland High School
PHOTOS: Friday Flyover
FUN FACTS
We are surrounded by cornfields
Kaneland Community Unit School District is made up of 9 municipalities
Our Homecoming Parade route rotates each year to one of four towns (Elburn, Kaneville, Maple Park & Sugar Grove), and this is only the 4th year we have had a parade.
Following the parade we have a Powder Puff Game and Man Poms on the Varsity football field with lights, concession stands, announcers and officials. It's another fun evening for our students.
We also do a traveling pep assembly with the elementary and middle schools during Homecoming Week, where we send students in a bus around the district.
Kaneland District 302 consists of 4 elementary schools, 1 middle, and 1 high school. We are ALL Kaneland Knights.
At graduation practice our Seniors take a bus ride back to their elementary schools, and do a "Walk Of Champs" thru their halls that are lined with the students and staff. We also do "Walk of Champs" in the halls of the high school when any person or team is headed to a state competition. This is led by a drumline.
We do things "The Knights Way."
Famous alums
Don Beebe:
Don graduated from Kaneland in 1983 after an impressive career in high school football, and he went on to receive a degree from Chadron State College in May of 1996. In the 1989 National Football League College Draft, the Buffalo Bills drafted Beebe. He played with the Bills for six years and went to four consecutive Super Bowls. He was also a member of the Green Bay Packers Super Bowl Championship team in Super Bowl XXXI.Retiring from football in 1998,
Don left behind an impressive record as a professional football player with 219 career receptions for 3,416 yards, 23 career touchdowns, 81 career kickoff returns for 1,735 yards and 1 touchdown from a kickoff return.
Don also had the honor of being named NFL Offensive Player of the Week.Beebe has not only shown his exceptional skills at football, but he has helped his community: his dedication and service have made him a role model. He has served as the Honorary Chairman of the Wisconsin Chapter of Make-A-Wish Foundation, has worked with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Athletes in Actions, has made numerous appearances for charity organizations from the Cub Scouts to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and has held a golf tournament each year to benefit Chadron State College.
PJ Fleck:
PJ is currently the head football coach for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. He also was the head coach at Western Michigan, and lead the Bronco's to an undefeated season in 2016. In college played football for NIU. He played two years in the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers. He was a 3 sport All-State athlete at Kaneland (football, basketball and track) and helped the Kaneland football team win back to back State Championships.
Eric Ferguson:
Elburn, Illinois, native Eric Ferguson has awakened and entertained Chicago radio listeners for over a decade after working around the country including Colorado, Florida and Pennsylvania. This University of Iowa alum claims he was attracted to a career in radio mostly because of the flashy, form-fitting uniforms that he gets to wear and the early hours allow him to pursue his dream of caddying on the PGA Tour. Eric likes to spend time with the most important people in his life... his wife Jen, his four kids, David Letterman, and the guy making the burritos at Chipotle.
In 2003 Kaneland CUSD's Hall of Fame recognized Eric Ferguson in the category of personal achievement for both his career success and dedication to his charity work. At that time he had been named Chicago's Top Radio Personality for the second year in a row, Eric Ferguson and his co-host, Kathy Hart, also had been recognized as having the "Best Morning Radio Show" by Chicago.citysearch.com. Not only does Ferguson excel on the air, but he also excels through his charity work. He is on the board of The Gus Foundation, an organization that supports pediatric brain cancer research.Ferguson has traveled around the country on his road to success.
After graduating from Kaneland High School in 1985 where he studied journalism and served as production manager of the school newspaper, the Krier, he attended the University of Iowa, earning a degree in communications.
Awards, accolades
AP Honor Roll for 8 years in a row
Graduation rate of 97% in 2017-18
School colors
Black and White
Mascot
Knights
School song
Kaneland our alma mater,
We pledge our hearts to you.
We know there is no other,
To whom we could be true.
We always strive to win our fame,
and evermore defend thy name.
So, Kaneland our alma mater,
We'll fight to win this ga-a-ame.
FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT KNIGHTS FIGHT (yelling)
Repeat First Stanza
CHA HEE, CHA HI, CHA HO HO HO
KANELAND KNIGHTS GO GO GO (yelling)
To find out more about Kaneland High School, visit khs.kaneland.org.
