From the Bleachers – With Ron Mosher: Prep football heading to exciting finish
From the Bleachers – With Ron Mosher
The high school football season is winding down, as our three Intermountain Area prep squads head into the final weeks of the regular season, and here at SCNS we could not be more proud of the players efforts and dedication to their teams. Here’s our re-cap of how things have fared for each team, and what’s ahead in the playoff picture.
SEE OTHER RECENT “FROM THE BLEACHERS” ARTICLES:
Burney Homecoming game cancelled as Raiders forced to forfeit their last two victories
Bulldogs and Raiders post wins as Dixie Fire shakes up opponents’ rosters
Intermountain area football – Bulldogs & Cards win, Raiders fall to powerhouse Redding Christian
FALL RIVER BULLDOGS
The Bulldogs have powered their way to a 6-0 mark so far this season, and are tied with another set of Bulldogs in the Los Molinos variety atop the league – both with a 4-0 conference record.
The two teams face off in the final game of the regular season on Friday, November 5, in Los Molinos. Before that final all-important bout, the Fall River squad has two other league games to get through – at Portola and home against Etna.
Fall River is riding a 12 game winning streak covering their ending six games in the 2019-20 season (the last prep football season). They began this campaign in a formidable fashion, ranking up their first four wins by blanking their opponents. So far, Fall River has outscored their foes in the six games this season, 225-18.
BIG VALLEY CARDINALS
The Cardinals can do no worse than a tie for the California 8-man Division 2 conference, and a win in their final game this Friday night at home against Westwood would give them the championship outright.
Big Valley has gone on a 4-0 march through opponents since losing to Burney in their season opening Fair Bowl game the night prior to the opening of the Inter-Mountain Fair. The Big Red Machine has outscored their opponents this season 202-128. Big Valley is guaranteed a slot in the CIF Playoffs coming up next month, and will definitely start the post-season by hosting at least the beginning game(s).
BURNEY RAIDERS
The Raiders have suffered through a topsy-turvy season that saw the northen section CIF taking away a pair of victories by handing them the dreaded forfeit in their last two games. With only two games left on their schedule, the Raiders find themselves fighting to make the playoffs. The official school explanation for the forfeits was, “clerical error.” (See last week’s related FTB article, along with accompanying OP/ED by SCNS’s Ron Mosher.)
The Raiders sat through their Bye week, after they had a double whammy handed to them when two opponents backed out of the Raider homecoming game previously scheduled for last week.
Burney now heads to Redding Christian in Palo Cedro for a game this Thursday night at 6pm. It could be an interesting finish to the season, with the Raiders hoping to fight their way into the post season tournament despite the pair of victories snatched from them.
About Ron, from the man himself:
I began doing sports coverage since the days of Dennis Smith at the Intermountain News in Burney in the mid 1960s through the mid 1970s. I took a long break after moving to the Bay Area, where I had an eight year stint with the San Francisco Giants front office as accounting and data processing manager – so my life has pretty much revolved around balls – footballs, basketballs, soccer balls, volleyballs, softballs, baseballs and the kids who toss ’em, catch ’em and excel in sports.
I returned to the Intermountain area in the 1990s and restarted my sports life in the area by working for Donna and Walt Caldwell and their Mountain Echo newspaper, retiring a few years ago after 20-plus years chasing kids all over northern California covering their antics in playing games.
I have a love for all three of the Intermountain area schools, having attended Big Valley elementary through fourth grade, graduating from Burney elementary and then becoming a 4-year Fall River Bulldog, graduating in 1961… yep, I’m an old guy.
But, I’m an old guy who’s glad to be returning to the keyboard in following Intermountain Area sports and the kids who play ’em… remember: Find something round… you’ll have a ball!
Contact the editor: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).
Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County-based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.
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