No lipstick put on pigskin openers

It is difficult to describe the disappointment Verde Valley high school football fans must have felt in their three teams after opening night Aug. 26.

Perhaps the best analogy would be to a slot machine that had just paid out three straight progressive jackpots.

Only Sedona Red Rock, Mingus Union and Camp Verde high schools were the one-armed bandits being lit up.

22-0. 63-36. 52-0.

In the 12 seasons football box scores have been kept online for the Scorpions, Marauders and Cowboys, no opening night has been so bad across the board.

No SRRHS team had been shut out so badly as at home Aug. 26 against St. Johns High School. The Scorpions have endured some brutal home losses to kick off their falls — 52-7, 61-21, 40-6 — but since 2004, only rival CVHS had shut them out, and that was at Sam Hammerstrom Field, 21-0.

Almost no MUHS defense had surrendered as many points as the Marauders did at home to Higley High School.

A 64-7 loss Sept. 17, 2004, at Moon Valley High School, was on the road.

No CVHS team had lost as badly to Chino Valley High School. Even head coach Steve Darby’s predecessor, Luke Steege, lost 48-12 in his final season.

Coincidentally, that 1-9 fall of 2012 concluded with an even uglier 74-8 Marauders win at home over the Cowboys — the last head-to-head matchup in the rivalry.

By 11 p.m. Aug. 26, my colleague, Michael Rinker, had finished hearing MUHS head coach Bob Young tear his defense a new smile, and I was texting Scorpions head coach John Bradshaw to look out for Chino, his next opponent.

Each coach’s refrain was the same:

“We will make needed adjustments this week,” Darby said.

“We’ve got a few things to fix,” Bradshaw said.

“We have a lot of things to work on that we did poorly,” Young said.

Not much else could be said. Even the best coaches can’t win a single game for their players.

Results of the three schools’ Friday, Sept. 2, games were not available until after deadline for this column.

Even after that, there are still two months’ worth of opportunities for Bradshaw, Darby and Young to make fans forget all about being outscored by a combined 101 points in their debuts.

But if first impressions mean anything, they have their work cut out for them.