It was the annual Friday night lights homecoming game for the Princeton High football team and there was an electric atmosphere as the program hosted WW/P-S.

There was a throng filling the stands on the crisp autumn evening, led by a spirited PHS student section and a rocking jazz band.

Little Tiger sophomore running back Carson Giles got caught up in the buzz.

“We were ready to go off the bat,” said Giles. “We were excited. It was homecoming, everybody was out there, it was a lot of energy.

Feeding on that energy, Giles ripped off a number of big runs in the first half. He bulled 18 yards for a touchdown early in the second quarter to get PHS on the board as it trailed 7-6. Later in the quarter, Giles broke loose on some big runs to help the Little Tigers march 71 yards in a drive culminated by a 7-yard TD pass from Vince Doran to Jakob Green to draw within 14-12 at the half.

“It was just one of those nights where you could see everything,” said the 5’9, 200-pound Giles, who rushed for more than 100 yards in the first half.

“My offensive line (Ethan Guerra, Marqui McBride, Adam Musa, Finn Kaiser, and Jaylen Johnson) is terrific, they are great. They do a great job of making sure the plays go the right way.”

In the second half, however, the WW/P-S running attack, led by Zyion Cooper, who ended the evening with 335 yards rushing, took over the contest as the Pirates pulled away to a 42-18 win over PHS.

“As the game went along, they keyed in on the running game and we had to try to pass the ball and sometimes that wasn’t there and sometimes it was there,” said Giles, reflecting on the loss which dropped the Little Tigers to 1-5.

“We got killed on defense on the big plays, their No. 3. (Cooper) was talented, that was a great job by him.”

In stepping into the starting running back job, Giles has gone through some growing pains.

“I think one of the challenges is trying to fill the shoes of Rory Helstrom; he was a great player,” said Giles.

“The biggest thing is that the speed of the game is insane on varsity. I am a big boy at 200 pounds so I am not used to it.”

Giles has clearly been getting up to speed in recent weeks, ending up with 172 yards rushing in the loss to WW/PS after running for 110 yards in a 55-16 loss to Steinert on October 8.

“Mostly it is my coaches, Dave Filson, Joe Gargione, and Charlie Gallagher, talking to me about doing things like keeping my eyes up field,” said Giles, reflecting on his progress.

“After practice, I run sprints, doing the extra stuff has been helping me. A running back is only as good as his offensive line and my offensive line is terrific.”

With PHS playing at Northern Burlington on October 21, Giles is confident that the Little Tigers can get back on the winning track as they look to snap a four-game losing streak.

“We have a lot of talent on this team and we just need to start delivering,” said Giles.

“You can’t dwell on these games, you have got to move on. We just have to catch our stride. This is a special team and I think it is a team to watch out for in the future.”