Ridgeline Falcons football: The beginning of a new era

LIBERTY LAKE, Wash. — Ridgeline High School, a school that just arrived at their brand-new campus, has also added a new football team to their repertoire. This means that the eastern side of Washington has a new team in the area, and the Evergreen State has a new program in the ranks.

Starting a football team is not easy in any way, shape or form. When I was in high school, our football team had just started playing the year before, and it was tough on everyone. However, the fight is worth it, and Ridgeline showed that this year.

At the brand-new campus of Ridgeline High on Sept. 3, the Falcons took the field for the first time in school history. Ironically, they were playing the oldest school in the Greater Spokane area, that being Lewis and Clark High School. Of course, the gear of the newest team in the region looked endearingly unfashionable, and the new band for the Falcons gridiron team was clearly still trying to play the school fight song in rhythm with each other. The nuisances of being a new team for a new school did not stop this incredible moment.

The stands being filled with fans for the season was also something to be ecstatic about. As we all know, COVID-19 restrictions made it so fans were not able to watch football live during the previous semesters. At the beginning of this school year in the Liberty Lake region, however, the constrictive binds of the worldwide pandemic had been loosened, allowing loud and proud football fans back to the silver bleachers.

“I’m here to watch the football game and watch the new team play their first game,” excited South Creek Middle Schooler Carter Alsworth said.

The environment was insane as the cheerleaders revved up the crowd as the players entered the grass battlefield to go to war.

Ridgeline High School Assistant Principal Grady Emerson remarked that it was not only good to see the kids compete, but it also feels like the community is connected again.

“It feels normal,” Emerson said. “This is what we’ve been dreaming of and this is what it’s all about.”

The day was positive for the upstart squad, even in defeat. The final score was 34-13, as the experience of the more established school program showed on the field. There were some bright moments from the new kids on the block though.

The Falcons of Ridgeline started off slow, allowing themselves to be put in a 20-0 hole against their adversaries from the Greater Spokane area, which were helped by the efforts of 220-pound Lewis and Clark fullback Matt Heer. The physical ball carrier tore through the young and undersized defense of Ridgeline and anchored two touchdown drives of 65 and 17 yards, the shorter drive being after a shanked punt by the Falcons.

The next drive, to the delight of the fans and coaches, is where the team showed what they can do.

Starting from their own 23-yard line in the middle of the second quarter, Ridgeline quarterback Tanner Smith avoided pressure and ran 22 yards for the team’s first ever first down. He then threw a screen pass to running back Cole LeGrant, which put the upstart squad into Lewis and Clark territory. After this, history was made as Smith threw a pass to Jaden Long for the first touchdown in the history of the school.

The score did not reflect how hard the Falcons played, as they had three drives end on fourth down in Lewis and Clark territory, and they scored their second touchdown as time ran out after blocking a punt. This was the beginning of the climb, the beginning of the uphill battle of starting a football program at a school.

The season went as expected for the first-year team, as they were only able to muster out one win in 10 games. The Falcons were shut out by Ferris High School, then Mt. Spokane High School. They unfortunately had to forfeit one game against Gonzaga Prep.

These are the trials and tribulations of starting from scratch and trying to build from the ground up. Most of the players on the Ridgeline Falcons are in their first half of high school and haven’t fully developed into a team yet. But there is hope, as the coaches see loads of potential.

“There’s a lot here to build on,” Ridgeline coach Dave Myers said. “For a lot of these kids, this was their first taste of varsity football. We started a lot of sophomores and even started a freshman. We started a sophomore at quarterback who had never played a varsity game.”

Even in losses, you could see the growth of the team. Eventually, they could be a force to be reckoned with if they play their cards right and do things the right way.

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