Here’s why opening night of Stanislaus District football felt different than all others
As I walked into Joe Debely Stadium on Friday night for a football game between Downey and Turlock, I didn’t know what to expect.
Sure, high school football had returned for the first time in 16 months. But with a limited amount of family members allowed into the stadium due to the coronavirus pandemic, what was the environment going to be like?
Well, it was different.
Fans were socially distanced and a majority wore masks.
Those not allowed in? Unless they were on the chain gang, most were stuck with a live-stream hoping for a solid internet connection.
There was no band and the snack bar was closed so no opportunity to grab a hot dog at halftime.
Players were given individual water bottles during timeouts instead of the usual Gatorade bottles that are passed around like a hot potato.
A welcomed sign was cheerleaders were in attendance to give us some of the normalcy of a football game.
A subdued atmosphere in Turlock
However, with all the excitement of the return of football, the atmosphere was subdued.
I noticed, along with Turlock Journal reporter Angelina Martin, just how quiet it was inside the stadium.
You could hear everything (good and bad) being said on and off the field on both sidelines, some language of which can’t be written in this column.
Meanwhile, in Oakdale, The Corral is usually packed. But not Friday. Talking with some coaches and players, there was something still missing ... the roar after touchdowns, the awe after big plays ... it just wasn’t there.
Escalon coach Andrew Beam said the teams needed to play again next year, not only because of the highly-contested matchup, but because it needed to be played in a full stadium.
Hilmar coach Frank Marques also noticed how quiet the stadium was in the Yellowjackets’ 35-19 win over Atwater.
“McSweeney Field felt dead with just the parents there,” Marques said in an interview with the Merced Sun-Star. “It was odd not having the noise we’re used to having at games. But even the official told us it was hard to believe it was the first game the way both teams got after it.”
Maybe some schools can do what colleges and professional teams did and pump in extra crowd noise because high school games should never be so quiet where you can hear everything that’s happening on the field and along the sidelines.
Still, for the parents and players, they were just excited to be back.
“I’m not crying, you’re crying, football is back,” wrote Heather Vargas on Twitter. Vargas is the mother of Orestimba junior Jayden Vargas.
Said Turlock senior offensive lineman Soloman Ussery: “I had so much adrenaline it wore me out a little. I was pumped all day today. I was texting all my teammates that I was ready to go and just grateful to be back.”
Oakdale junior quarterback Jackson Holt said he had a moment before the game where he stopped just to take in the atmosphere.
“When we were walking into the stands and taking the field, it all hit me in a hurry, ‘Wow, we’re playing football,’” Holt said.
There was also the new way in how games ended.
There were no handshakes between two teams ... only waves and chants of “good game.”
I guess this is our new normal ... at least for the next month.
At least we had football.
While some areas had cancellations due to positive tests within programs, every game scheduled in the Stanislaus District was played in Week 1.
Not everyone was able to play as Hilmar was without one of its best players due to contract tracing after a classmate tested positive due for COVID-19.
I am looking forward to the full high school football experience again but after the year and a half, I am just glad the sport is back.
