The Reds football team has experienced a season full of uncertainty and ups and downs, but are ready to head into playoffs. After going through a rough patch of losses, the Reds got back on track after their win against the Valley Vikings 35-0 on Saturday, Oct. 26. Eaton Reds football team recently faced the Berthoud Spartans. The Reds experienced a hard loss 15-33 against Berthoud on Nov. 1, and lost their momentum. The loss to Berthoud and win against Valley set the record at 5-4 for the season.
Both Eaton’s defense and offense struggled against Berthoud. Andrew Loyd (26) said, “During Berthoud offensively we couldn’t put drives together and we didn’t put the defense in good positions. We just got outplayed.” Eaton had 124 passing yards and 109 receiving yards during the game. Ely Madaleno (26) scored two touchdowns against Berthoud, which led to Eaton’s only points. The players were very disappointed with their loss, but are optimistic about their upcoming playoff game against Elizabeth on Nov. 10.
Madaleno said, “We are just going to take this week (heading into playoffs) as a regular week.” Eaton football’s team is planning on continuing the things they have been doing for the past months, to prepare for the upcoming playoff game against Elizabeth. The Elizabeth Cardinals have a current record of 7-2 overall. It’s going to be a tough game for the Eaton Reds, but after the loss against Berthoud, the Reds are going to fight for the win to advance in the postseason.
These past few days, Elizabeth, Colorado has gotten almost 15 inches of snow, which caused the game to be postponed, pushing the game back to Nov. 10. Both teams have had the discussion of moving the game to a neutral site, but are not able to agree on the conditions of moving it. Elizabeth hasn’t been able to practice since the snow has been on the ground, which gives Eaton an advantage.
Although there is an advantage, Eaton is focusing on what they are going to practice in order to compete and advance. The responsibility of running the offense falls into the hands of Andrew Loyd, who is Eaton’s quarterback. Loyd is going to play a crucial role in the game against Elizabeth. Loyd said, “We will just fix what we need to fix in practice and go on from there.” Loyd is hoping for a better outcome, when it comes time for them to play Elizabeth. In practice they are just going to keep focusing on the fundamentals.
Austin Crider (26) said, “We will hopefully pass the ball a lot, and be able to keep the game close.” Several players have said they need to change things in both the offensive plays and defensive plays, in order to become a bigger threat to Elizabeth.
Both the teams will be bringing their A-game this Saturday. It is promised to be an intense match with both sides fans and parents sitting at the edge of their seats for the final whistle to blow. Especially since Eaton had a tough loss against Berthoud, they have a lot of pressure on their backs to beat Elizabeth.
