It’s September, which means a lot of things. School has started, every college app is finally out, but most importantly, football has returned! Arcadia Football has returned in fashion, as the season has just kicked off.

AHS Football is known to be one of the most popular events that the school offers, as its students and parents support their school and friends in an interactive and exciting manner. Needless to say, the success of the football team is dependent on the rise of attendance of games and therefore the support it gains. This is why the practice is so imperative for athletes to get ahead, as it allows them time to prepare for the season to start and familiarize themselves with the playbook and defensive schemes that the coaches want them to master. However, for some players, the football grind did not start just this month, but about two months ago. Rising senior Aaron Yeung is one of these players. In his efforts to earn minutes this year, he “makes sure to consistently hit the weights and go for runs every night to practice and play well conditioned. No one enjoys cardio and it’s often slept on but it pays big time late in games.”

To be well informed and have a positive mentality carrying out these tasks is immense, and it is something that the entire team should adopt to replicate its CIF berth season that occurred just last season. Not only have the benchwarmers had a great start to the season, but also the starters as well. Starting cornerback and senior Ramon Morfin is one to have enjoyed the recent practices, as “he has benefited from the hard work and dedication that his teammates have encouraged him to do.” After watching a few of the practices and observing the players, Ramon’s claim seems to be true, as most of the players play with such vigor and intensity: almost identical to as if they were playing in a real game.After talking to a few of the players post-practice, their favorite drill seemed to be the “Oklahoma Drill”, a drill that involves hard hitting, and rewarding the last man standing. Not only does this build strength and better hitting, but it also brings competitiveness and a desire to win, which can translate into games. AHS Football looks to maintain its strong characteristics and foundations that it used to propel a very successful 9-4 record last season and a first CIF berth.

Earlier this month, Arcadia took on the very talented, Cathedral High School at AHS. Both teams were 1-0 coming into the game coming off big wins against La Salle and Sante Fe. Cathedral started off the game, marching down the field for an easy 7 points. Arcadia couldn’t seem to get their offense going after the first score and Cathedral scored one more touchdown to close out the first quarter. Arcadia was only down by 2 scores to open the second half, but then the majority of the scoring came. The Phantoms scored 4 touchdowns in the second quarter while sophomore Bryce Young showed off his athleticism in the air and on the ground. Arcadia never seemed to get its offense going as Cathedral was able to shout them out and went on to win 49-0. Bryce went 24 for 27, threw for 345 yards, and had 6 touchdowns. Though Arcadia fought the whole game and never seemed to give up, it lacked the size of Cathedral and winded up with it first loss of the season. Arcadia will have another tough test at home against Hart on Friday at 7 p.m. This will be Arcadia’s last non-conference game as it will have 7 Pacific League games to conclude the regular season.

The preseason practice got the boys back into to shape, but there are many obstacles the team may face throughout the season. Although the team faced a tragic lost against Cathedral many can be optimistic about how well the team is doing at the moment. Our Apaches are 1-1 overall, so make sure to keep an eye out for them all season!

Photo by Conner Hua