Spring Football Recap
Greetings From The Booth!
In this edition of VFB, I wanted to look back on the recently completed so-called “2020” Shenandoah University football season, which was played in the Spring of 2021, and project what it means heading toward the Fall.
Let me get this out of the way. No offense to anyone at BC, but I’ve seen enough of Bridgewater for a while. Playing a team 3 times in 5 games is almost unprecedented, but that’s how it goes in the Crazy World of COVID. Because W&L shut it’s Spring football season down, a hole was created in the beginning of the season, which the Eagles filled with a “non-conference” game. In addition to the regularly-scheduled matchup, the teams played Round III last Saturday in the so-called ODAC Championship Weekend, a game won by BC 22-14. If familiarity breeds contempt, SU and Bridgewater are now tired of each other.
As for the season, on the surface you’ll see a record of 1-4. Looking closer, one could make the case that it could have easily gone the other way and been 4-1. The Hornets lost a close opener to BC 27-21. In that game SU fell behind 21-0 early but then dominated the rest of the way, and simply ran out of time. In their only non-competitive game of the season, the Hornets were blanked by Hampden-Sydney 26-0, followed by a 52-38 loss to Randolph-Macon. In that contest, Shenandoah actually led 31-30, so with a few breaks, who knows? Then, a 19-18 win against BC, followed by last week’s 22-14 defeat against the Eagles.
Regardless of the record, this Spring was an investment in the upcoming Fall season. As my broadcast partner and Hornet Associate AD Scott Musa said in Saturday’s postgame show, the season was a win. A nice foundation has now been laid for a full 10-game season starting in September. Quarterbacks Zack Mathis and Chris Sonnenberg both got considerable playing time this Spring in game conditions. A number of Hornet wide receivers contributed, and that will only provide dividends later this year (and beyond). And so on and so forth. All of those Spring “reps” will be put into the bank, and draw interest.
And we won’t have long to collect. Unlike most end-of-seasons when we say “wait until next year,” the 2021 campaign begins on September 4th, just 5 months away, with a home contest against Methodist. There is much to be excited about from “the good guys in red.” Can’t wait!
Until next time from The Booth…GO HORNETS!
RW
