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Rangers open football season tonight, Aug. 20
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- Published: Friday, 20 August 2021 09:33
Ojai Valley News photo by Ken Brown
The Nordhoff Rangers will host the Cabrillo Conquistadors tonight, Friday, Aug. 20, at the Ojai Valley Community Stadium at Nordhoff High School. The coin toss is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Mike Miller, Ojai Valley News sports editor
The Nordhoff Rangers will return to the gridiron tonight, Aug. 20, when they host the Cabrillo Conquistadors at 7. The game will serve as the 2021 season opener for both teams and head coach Lance Wiggins says his crew is excited to play.
“They have been excited to get the season going for weeks, so that’s good to see. We definitely have a lot of work to do and we’ve spent this week correcting some of the things we saw during our scrimmage last week against Agoura. We are a long way from where we want to be, but we’re excited to play,” he said.
Cabrillo went 0-3 last season during the COVID19-shortened season and this year they are down in terms of numbers, but they will be looking to get their season off to a solid start. “We never take any team for granted. Every time you step on the field, you have to be ready to play,” added Wiggins.
The Rangers have a handful of key returning players, but fans can expect to see plenty of new faces when NHS hits the field. According to Wiggins, the Rangers have had a couple of key injuries this summer, so a number of first-year varsity players are learning new positions.
What to Expect:
Fans can expect to see the Rangers run the football more than they have over the last few seasons. The Rangers No. 1 ground option will be senior Eli Dvortcsak. Last season, Dvortcsak averaged 7.2 yards per carry and scored four rushing touchdowns in just four games. Defensively, expect to hear the name Zac Sheets over the loudspeaker time and time again. As a junior, Sheets averaged a mind-boggling 19.8 tackles per game.
Ojai Valley News Prediction:
With a difficult nonleague schedule awaiting them, the Rangers will be looking to kick the 2021 season off with a win. We think Nordhoff will come out aggressive on the ground and they will break the game open in the second half. Nordhoff 48, Cabrillo 13.