SCOTTSBURG, Ind. (WDRB) -- It was football with some adjustments as Scottsburg hosted Lawrenceburg in a preseason scrimmage Saturday.
There were signs and announcements reminding people to wear masks. There were separate entrances for fans of the home and visiting teams. There were cones spread 6 feet apart along the sidelines to allow players to follow social distancing. And the traditional postgame hand shake was instead a wave across the field.
Coming off a 3-7 season, Scottsburg players and coaches were pleased with what they were able to get done in their scrimmage against 3A power Lawrenceburg.
"As a whole, we are much more competitive and have much higher skill than we previously thought about ourselves," senior quarterback Kent Paris said. "We can hang with some people."
After three decades without a football program, Scottsburg brought the sport back in 2014. The school started playing varsity football again in 2017, when the current seniors were freshman. Those seniors desperately want to have a season.
"That would just be awful," Paris said about a season that could be taken away. "We've spent all of our high school years preparing for this moment: our senior season. We'd all be very sad."
The Scottsburg High School football team scrimmaged Lawrenceburg on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020.
Players and coaches are trying not to think about that possibility, instead moving forward with appreciation and resolve.
"Like our athletic director said recently, we would do anything for these young men and women to have a season," head coach Kyle Mullins said.
"Tomorrow's not guaranteed," added Jamison Barger, a senior offensive and defensive lineman. "It can be taken away tonight. Let's go as hard as you can every play. If that was my last practice, I'm glad because I did my best."
Scottsburg opens its season Friday, Aug. 21, at Clarksville.
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