FORT DEFIANCE – Fort Defiance will look to end a nine-year playoff drought and bounce back from a one-win season a year ago as it takes the field for the 2022 campaign. Fort, Dan Rolfe, four questions as the season approaches.
News anchor: What did you like about the first week of practice?
Rolfe: I’ve been happier with the excitement and enthusiasm at every practice.
Headline: What are the expectations and goals for the team this year?
Rolfe: The expectations for this year are basically the same as every year. We want to be better in Week 10 than we were in Week 1.
News Leader: Who are your top returning players?
Rolfe: In our situation, all returnees are key. We lost two offensive players and three defensive players from last year. We had to play more young kids than we would normally like, but hopefully this year it will pay off because they have all had varsity game experience now.
We return our entire starting offensive line and all but two offensive linemen. Defensively, we have to replace two key positions, but just like the offense, all the other guys have all played in varsity games and understand the speed of the game.
Headline: Who are some potential newcomers who could make a positive impact?
Rolfe: I don’t know if we have any real newcomers from last year. That being said, there are two kids that got hurt early for us a year ago that are now back and healthy. Tailyn Armentrout was our leading receiver after the first game, but was injured just after half of the game in week two. He had five catches in that game before he got hurt.
Landon Barb was also another key guy we were counting on from a year ago who dealt with nagging injuries from the preseason and was never able to shake them off. Both are healthy and looking great in the first week.
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FORT DEFIANCE FORT DEFIANCE FORT FOOTBALL
(All matches start at 19:00)
- August 26: at Turner Ashby
- September 2: Liberty (Bedford)
- September 9: Waynesboro
- September 16: Broadway
- September 23: at Rockbridge County
- September 30: Open
- Oct. 7: at Wilson Memorial
- October 14: Staunton
- October 21: Heads of rivers
- October 28: at Stuarts Draft
- November 4: at Buffalo Gap
Patrick Hite is The News Leader’s education reporter. Story ideas and tips are always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com
