Mid-Season Gridiron Report

EL DORADO, CA (MPG) - Cordova football fans, I wish I had better news to report regarding the 2022 Big Red football season.

It’s been a struggle for this young inexperienced team in every one of their preseason outings. The Lancers lost against Union Mine last Thursday, September 22, by a score of 41-6 in their last preseason game. The Lancers are winless heading into their first Greater Sacramento League (GSL) matchup against Foothill at home on this Friday, September 30.

This will also be their homecoming game and as I have witnessed before in the many seasons, I have been following Cordova football, the team seems to step it up a notch at home games and especially during homecoming. The challenge here is that the Big Red might have to turn it up a few more notches if they are going to come away with their first win. 

The season has been plagued with turnovers, mistakes, penalties and a defense that just can’t find a way to stop their opponents. The defense has allowed 41 points or more in every one of their preseason games. The offense hasn’t fared much better, finding the endzone only five times so far through five games.

All the points have been scored by the Lancers’ senior star quarterback, halfback, safety, kickoff return specialist and punter Kevin Lewis. Kevin has given it his all, going both ways all season long offensively and defensively. Battered and bruised, he has found a way to electrify the hungry Cordova crowd with his amazing running skills and defensive stops. 

RELATED: Lancers lose 4th straight game by wide margin

That was the tough reality. Now, let’s look at the bright side of the 2022 Lancers varsity football team. Remember, the preseason is designed to help the coaches and player prepare for GSL play and hopefully a spot in the playoffs. There is no reason why this team can’t achieve this goal if they do their jobs on and off the field.

The one thing that I have noticed about this team is that each player has that one thing that can’t be taken away from them by the other team… and that’s heart. These kids have been trying their hardest to make every play work despite the challenges on the field. 

There has been a handful of players that I have noticed improving each week as the coaches continue to search for the right offensive and defensive combinations. One particular player is senior quarterback Cameron Daughtery. Cameron jumped into the starting QB job to free up Kevin Lewis for his more natural position at halfback.

Another kid that goes both ways and has been giving it his all is senior wide receiver, halfback and cornerback Fabian Arellano-Perez. Next is junior middle linebacker Ruvim Kravchuk. Ruvim has locked up one of the MLB jobs with his aggressive play against runs up the middle. 

Also getting better and better each week is sophomore Armani Curtis who has been holding down the jobs of center, defensive lineman and kicker. Other players stepping up their game play a notch are junior defensive end Braidyn White, junior Jayden Rice, freshman Anthony Gomez and junior offensive/defensive lineman Trevor Loveall.

Interim head coach Kyle Williams and the rest of the Cordova coaching staff have their work cut out for them as we head into GSL competition. So far, they too have struggled along with the players with coming up with a successful gameplan.

“You’ve got to want what you want more than what you got,” Williams told MPG about the upcoming game against Foothill.

RELATED: New Lancers coach aims ‘to restore Cordova’s tradition and dominance’

My interpretation of this quote is that the players and coaches both must want to win more than anything else and that certainly would be more than they’ve gotten so far. Maybe this will be the week?

I invite all of you to come out and cheer for the team at the following home games: September 30 vs. Foothill (Homecoming); October 14 vs. Valley (Staff Appreciation Night); October 28 vs. Florin (Senior Night).

All games start at 7:15 p.m. with the junior varsity game starting at 5:00 p.m.

GO BIG RED!