Fallon quarterback Avery Strasdin hands the ball to running back Colby Malkovich in Saturday’s scrimmage against Sparks.
For the first time since November 2019, the Greenwave football team was back on the field.
Fallon traveled to Sparks on Saturday for a morning scrimmage against the Railroaders as the Greenwave prepares for its season opener this weekend against Spring Creek. Fallon hosts the Spartans on Saturday at 3 p.m. The game will be broadcast on radio with Larry Barker calling the play-by-play and Randy Beeghly providing the commentary on KKTU-FM 99.5. The game will also be video streamed on the NFHS Network.
“I felt for the first time facing an opponent in 15 months we had a good scrimmage,” Fallon coach Brooke Hill said. “We saw some things that we need to work on but overall, it is very similar to scrimmages in the past.”
After watching his squad brush off the cobwebs since its last game – the state championship loss to Fernley in Carson City – Hill said his team’s ready for this weekend’s opener. Spring Creek opened its season last Saturday with a 7-6 win over Fernley.
“They do what Spring Creek does and that is try to out-physical you,” Hill said about the Spartans defeating the defending state champ. “They do a great job at that power run game.”
Hill noted that the Spartans were able to neutralize the Vaqueros’ veer offense, which caused issues for the league last season on their way to the state championship.
“They also did a good job defensively against Fernley's veer offense, so we know we are in for a ‘dog fight’ on Saturday,” Hill said.
It’s also been 15 months since Fallon hosted a game at the Edward Arciniega Athletic Complex when the Greenwave won its semifinal state game to set up the cross-valley rivalry showdown.
This home season, though, will be different due to COVID-19.
For Saturday’s home game, at a minimum, only two fans per football player will be allowed entry. No public or visiting fans are allowed because of the 100-person gathering limit, which is expected to be modified to 250 on March 15.
Nevertheless, Hill and his team are excited to be back playing where they haven’t lost since September 2017 when Fernley upset Fallon by two points.
“It will be nice to play at home,” Hill said. “It will be great for our players and their families to be part of an athletic event again. So, we are excited.”
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