SAFFORD — The Safford Bulldogs had to wait an extra week to take the field for the 2020 season. They were originally scheduled to play Willcox last week but the Cowboys had to cancel because of COVID-19.
When the Bulldogs do take the field on Friday they will be under the direction of former Eastern Arizona College football coach, John O’Mera. In 20 seasons as a college coach he compiled an impressive 143-92 record. That makes O’Mera the 21st all time winningest coach in NJCAA history. His teams also led the nation in rushing 10 of his 20 seasons.
The last time O’Mera stepped on a high school sideline as a head coach was 21 years ago at New Mexico Military High School.
Eduardo Ogas and CJ Scrivner return in the offensive backfield and should benefit from the triple option attack. Scrivner ran for nearly 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns last season including 3 games over 150 yards. Ogas added 600 yards and 5 rushing touchdowns.
The Bulldogs will host the Round Valley Elks on Friday at 7pm. Round Valley took down rival St. Johns 38-12 in their opening game.
The Elks are moving up to 3A after their recent run in 2A. Head Coach Markus Bell is 76-13 at Round Valley dating back to 2012.
This will only be the 4th ever meeting between these two schools. Round Valley leads the series 3-0. The last meeting was in 2010 when the Elks won 42-29.