The first football scrimmages for area high school teams came off without a hitch, according to the head coaches at Dayton, Liberty, Hardin and Hull-Daisetta.
Fortunately, injuries were not a major issue and for the most part all of the grid bosses were happy with their team's performance against outside competition.
Dayton
Coach Jerry Stewart's Broncos welcomed Class 3A perennial powerhouse West Orange-Stark to Bronco Stadium last Saturday night and despite some first half turnovers, held on for a 28-21 win that was played under game-like conditions sans contact on punts and kickoffs.
"We had some highs and lows," said Stewart, referring to the Broncos racing to a 14-0 lead only to have the visitors tie the game as a result of two costly turnovers.
The Broncos elected to limit first-team quarterback Cody Green and receiver A.J. Dugat to just one half of work.
Meanwhile, backup signal-caller Zach Crowder and running back B.J. Jones delighted the Dayton audience with their combined offensive display in the second half.
Green, who was sidelined most of last season with a severe ankle injury, brought the crowd to its feet on Dayton's first possession, rambling some 50 yards for a touchdown on a QB keeper.
The Bronco senior also kicked the extra point to give his ballclub a 7-0 lead with 8:56 left in the quarter.
Dugat raced into the end zone on a nifty run at the 9:13 mark of the second quarter. The fleet-footed receiver finished with 11 pass receptions for 217 yards.
Later in the second period with the Broncos driving deep into Mustang territory, Green misfired and an alert WO-S defender returned the ball to Dayton's four-yard line.
A short time later, they cut the deficit to 14-6 after missing the extra point try.
But the Golden Triangle entry tied the game with four minutes remaining in the half when Green was unable to get the handle on a high snap that sailed into the Dayton end zone.
Darius 'Smokey' Detiege pushed the Broncos back out front on a counter play and later Terry Asson got into the scoring act to complete the scoring. WO-S tacked on one score in the second half, but for the most part the Broncos kept them in check.