Sidney Herald

With two weeks of practice under its belt, the Sidney football team is ready to play under the lights for the first time this season. The Eagles will open on the road with a border battle against the tough Coyotes of Williston, N.D., at 7 p.m. (CST).

Traditionally, the match-up is extremely competitive and equates into an entertaining football game for the fans. “It’s kind of a fun game,” Sidney coach Mike Gear said. “We play them right away and then both teams go our separate ways. Every year it’s a good measuring stick to see where we’re at.”

Going into the first game of the season, the Eagles and Coyotes will concentrate more on what they are doing than what their opponents are.

“We have a lot to work on going into the game, so we’re not going to be as concerned on what Williston is doing than we would be later in the season,” Gear said.

Gear expects the North Dakota Class A team to be a difficult test for the Eagles.

“It’s almost always a very close, competitive football game,” he said. “They usually have a strong team and give us a tough match-up in the first game of the season.”

For many of Sidney’s 31 players, Friday will mark the first major varsity playing time they have seen. The Eagles return four starters from last season on offense and just one player starting defensively last season. Six or seven other players saw some varsity action.

“We’re pretty young, so that first game will be very important,” Gear said. “You never know how a player will react in a new situation.”

Sidney will once again have three non-conference games to prepare for the tough competition the squad will face in Eastern A action. After playing Williston, the Eagles travel to Lewistown Sept. 10 and then host Havre Sept. 17.

“We’re going to be able to try some different things and see what players work best at each position,” he said. “It’s always nice to have a chance to work things out.”

In fact, Sidney may show several different looks in its first several games. One new addition to offense may be the installation of a shotgun style offense.

“It’s something we’ve been working on,” he said. “We’ll use the first couple of games to see what offense will serve us the best this season.”

After seeing improvements in practice, Gear is excited for his team to hit the field.

“That’s the first true test,” he said. “You never know where you’re at until that first game.”

sports@sidneyherald.com