Attacking the Moment
After months of uncertainty regarding the program’s transition to 8-man football, Sage Hill’s home crowd was alive and well Friday night at Ramer Field to greet their school’s team. The opening kickoff finally arrived, leaving a lasting trail of cheers and applause while erasing any doubts about the school’s commitment to its football program.
The game felt much closer than the final score, a 54-30 Calvary Chapel victory. At halftime, Sage Hill was within striking distance, only trailing by one touchdown. Although the game finished with a wider lead in favor of Calvary Chapel, Sage’s players showed plenty of talent, highlighted by great performances from wide receivers Miles McCord, Darius Shayan-Smith, and quarterback William Leong.
The transition between 8 and 11-man football did not appear to affect the players. “It’s the same game that we played last year; it’s just a lot more fast paced,” noted William Leong.
The program went through many changes this offseason. In addition to a new style of gameplay, new coach BJ Crabtree debuted on Friday. One player spoke on his behalf noting, “I love the coaches. They’re all supportive and very well-versed in football.”
At the conclusion of the game, Lightning players remained positive about their upcoming season. The team has a lot of heart toward the game. Elijah Soto noted, “it’s still football, and I love football. So, I’m gonna play no matter what,” and teammate Carlos Orozco agreed, commenting, “we’re still playing with the same intensity and heart.”
After losing in his debut, Crabtree commented, “I never like losing, and I don’t ever want to get comfortable losing. […] This has been a big journey, and sometimes a challenging journey for where we’ve come in our transition from 11-man to 8-man. I was very proud of the kids, the way they decided to make a choice to make this a journey and to work their tails off. And they did, and so I was very proud of them tonight.”
Moving forward the inaugural 8 man football team looks to rebound for their remaining seven games. Still looking for their first win of the season, Darius Shayan-Smith firmly believes that “we’ll get back on our feet.” Quarterback Leong added, “I think we’re going to have a pretty good season. We’ll learn from today and keep moving forward.”
The team’s motto is to “attack the moment,” and that is exactly what they plan to do for the remaining games of the season.
