Albany back in action after week off
By Donnie A. Lucas
The varsity Lion football team opens District 7-2A competition at home on Friday, hosting the Roscoe Plowboys.
The Lions (4-2) are fresh off of an open week, while the Plowboys (1-5, 0-1) fell in their district opener last week to Hamlin, 64-0.
“We certainly don’t need to take Roscoe or any other team in our district for granted,” head football coach Denney Faith said. “Roscoe has had a rough start to the season, including losing their first district game last Friday to Hamlin. That makes them dangerous because they need a win to have a shot at a playoff spot.”
Faith said that he is looking for Roscoe to play hard, depending mostly on their short, quick passing game.
“You are always worried coming off a bye week that we could be a little rusty,” Faith said. “We will need to focus fast and not let down in this game.”
Faith said that the Lions need to start strong and get the win to open district.
Kickoff at Robert Nail Stadium is at 7:00 p.m., which will be the start time for the district games for the remainder of the regular season.
Open Date
Albany had an open date last Friday, giving the team a chance to rest a little before the start of district.
“This open date was a little different for us,” Faith said. “Usually the JV and junior high teams are open the same week as the varsity, but this year the sub-varsity teams hosted games against Stamford on Thursday.”
The coach said that the varsity team was used as a scout team, lining up against the JV to help prepare for their game.
“The varsity helped the JV prepare, but also kept in shape with some conditioning,” Faith said. “Even though we stayed busy, we didn’t go as hard as during a normal week. Several of the guys were able to let some nagging injuries heal.”
The coach reports that he expects a full roster on the sideline against Roscoe this week.
“Everyone should be back to start district,” he said. “It was a hard pre-district schedule, and there were a few guys with soreness that needed time to heal.”
District Details
The Lions are part of what has become a small district, which includes a total of five teams after both Baird and Roby dropped down to six-man football.
Albany will travel to Cross Plains on Oct. 25, followed by the final home game on Nov. 1 against Haskell. The regular season finale will be in Hamlin on Nov. 8 in a game that is anticipated to decide the district championship.
Four of the five teams in the district will advance into the playoffs.
The Lions will be on the hunt for a 12th straight district championship when they play in Hamlin, along with an impressive 700th program win.
