On September 1, at Tak Fudenna Memorial Stadium, Irvington Football played their Link Blackout Game against Napa High. This was Irvington’s second game this season. With new captains and many new recruits, the team executed many unexpected changes, and two clean touchdowns. The touchdowns displayed the team’s potential for greatness this season.
Coach Anthony Jackson believes the team has improved in comparison to previous years:, “I think we grew a lot. Many sophomores played and one freshman played a lot [Augustin Sedano, Ethan Insixiengmay, Tommy Chang, , Gabrial Aruwah, Adrian Perkins]. A lot of kids we’re going to be dependent on later got a chance to get out there and play on Saturday. So I think that’s a good thing. As far as the result, I feel like we definitely could have played better.”
The new additions to the team truly boosted Irvington Football forward. With an intense amount of summer conditioning, from running to weightlifting to drills, the team performed well, pressing forward and not being afraid to rush for that ball. The team and their coach made it a point to keep working hard, not being put down by previous failure. The work they put in evident on the field. Overall, the team performed well, working together even though many of their top players were injured or not able to play due to cramping, in-game injuries, and Covid. This game truly displayed the team’s perseverance and togetherness, as they were able to overcome all those challenges and put forth their best effort during the game.
Matty Forbes, Team Captain, explained, “We had new people that didn’t play certain positions. So telling them where to be and who to guard, stuff like that. So that was a little bit challenging. Just having to remember what I had to do and then having to tell other people what to do as well.” Nevertheless, the team stayed steadfast, executing their plays and working in special teams– the group of players on the field during kicking plays.
That night, Irvington lost 12-35, but this didn’t stop players from getting out there and fighting for that ball. Moreover, the Irvington student section never lost hope, feeding off of energy from the cheerleaders, cheering for every play, encouraging the team, and keeping a high amount of enthusiasm.
When asked their takeaway from this game, both Coach and Captain enunciated that this game was truly a learning experience, and that it will propel them forward. Coach Jackson says, “Our goals are still intact. We want to finish in the top 500. We want to compete for the league championship. And we want to have one of the higher win totals in school history.” This loss has done nothing but improve their plays, and give them more players to use on the field and create the best plan moving forward. Irvington Football, with the talent level on the team, has a chance to do some special things this year.
Coach continued, “I thought it was a good lesson for coaches, we have to know that everybody’s ready to play, I think that’s something that’s telling for us and it’s telling for them, ‘I could end up in a game’”. Overall, Irvington Football performed well, adjusted quickly, and fought for the ball.
