Football season takes shape for Burghers and Warriors

NORTHERN WARREN CO. | Plans for the 2021 high school football competition have been redrafted several times in recent weeks — and it's not due to the pandemic, which continues to weigh on people's minds as fall sports received a green light recently from authorities. The recent realignment of football divisions and league play has been prompted by several schools' declining enrollment and slumping student participation, as well as Lake George athletes lobbying passionately for their autonomy. In June, Lake George football players threatened to quit the sport if the Lake George/Hadley Luzerne WarEagles team merged with Corinth as all three schools had decided months ago. Faced with upset athletes and their parents over this pending merger, the Lake George school board and administration reversed their decision in early June, voting for the team to compete entirely on its own, while Hadley-Luzerne, with the fewest players, remained with Corinth due to Section II rules. The change dropped Lake George from Class C down to Class D, while Corinth/Hadley- Luzerne was assigned a Class C designation, and new game schedules were announced. But early this month, Bishop Gibbons and Hoosic Valley opted not to play varsity football this fall, following the lead of Whitehall which said months earlier they'd only have a junior varsity squad for fall 2021. Apparently, these three teams are struggling to sign up enough players to compete. These changes realigned the North and South Divisions. The North Division includes Lake George, Warrensburg-North Warren, Cambridge-Salem, and Greenwich. The South Division consists of Canajoharie-Fort Plain, Chatham, Helderberg Valley, Stillwater, and Cohoes, which is playing down a class, thus they are ineligible for playoffs. Lake George's schedule is as follows: Sept. 10, vs. Stillwater; Sept. 17, at Chatham. Sept. 24, at Canajoharie-Fort Plain; Oct. 1, vs. Granville; Oct. 9, at Cambridge-Salem; Oct. 15, vs. Greenwich; and Oct. 23, at Warrensburg. Warrensburg-North Warren's schedule is as follows: Sept. 11, vs. Helderberg Valley; Sept. 17, at Canajoharie-Fort Plain; Sept. 25, at Granville; Oct. 2, vs. Cambridge-Salem; Oct. 8, at Greenwich; Oct. 15, at Stillwater; and Oct. 23, vs. Lake George; For both teams, playoffs and crossover games are to be held Oct. 29 or 30 and Nov. 5 or 6. Both Lake George and Warrensburg-North Warren will have one extra week of competition to be held one week before their first regular-season game. The Warrensburg-North Warren Burghers will be playing a "Week Zero" game — following regular game rules, but the outcome doesn't affect seedings or standings. This game is to be held at 7 p.m. Sept. 4 against Cairo-Durham/Catskill at Watervliet. Earlier on Sept. 4, the Lake George Warriors will be running plays against both AuSable Valley and Moriah in a three-way scrimmage — with regular game rules suspended. Athletes on both teams are eager to play football after a delayed season with players opting out due to the pandemic and no playoffs. On Aug. 20, Warrensburg-North Warren Coach Mike Perrone exhibited his enthusiasm in a Facebook post, where he revealed his calculations that 11 of his players gained muscle by ramping up their weight-lifting abilities by a collective 1,235 pounds in their pre-season strength workout sessions which concluded Friday. "I can honestly say this was one of the best years we've ever had," he said of the workouts. "The results and improvements speak for themselves — and these players, who worked hard all summer, will notice a significant difference on the field." Participating in the program and racking up impressive strength, speed and endurance gains were Tristen Hitchcock, Tim Kelly, Cooper Morehouse, Hunter Nemec. Landon Olden, Caden Allen, Trace McGrath, Andrew Beadnell, Thomas Combs, Ty Brown, Dante Corriveau Caiden Mosher, Daalten DeMarsh as well as Dylan Winchell, who returns to Warrensburg High after moving to Newport, Tennessee for the 2020-21 school year so he could compete in both football and wrestling.

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Football season takes shape for Burghers and Warriors

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