Hundreds of eager fans gather along the sidelines to see two equal rivals battle for victory. As the ball flies towards the quarterback, the offensive line comes alive, resisting the relentless opposition of the defense.

The quarterback hands the ball off to the runningback who breaks to the left as he swoops around the baffled defense for a fifteen-yard gain from the line of scrimmage. However, the offensive show was for the rival Immanuel Eagles as they defeated FC, 49-7, on Sept. 9.

Though only in his second season of football, and his first on varsity, Ryan Brunn, ?08, remains among the ranks of powerful players that help the Eagles stride to victory.

As offensive runningback and defensive back, Brunn finds his joy in playing sports, in specific, football.

?It gives you a chance to improve yourself by building muscle and conditioning your body that no other sport can offer,? Brunn explained.

While playing his previous game against Immanuel, Brunn suffered a broken toe after a hard fall while running the ball for a short gain of yards.

?The injury never hurt that much, but kept me out of practice and on my crutches for a few practices until it heeled,? Brunn said as to the extent of his injury.

Despite the team?s temporary loosing streak, Brunn remains optimistic for the team?s Northwest Sierra League games, the first to occur against Firebaugh on Oct. 19.

?Even though we lost the game against Immanuel, I felt that every player gave his best and we hope to win the valley championship later in the season,? Brunn said with hope towards the remainder of the season.

Although the team showed little offense and gave up 457 yards throughout the entire game, they managed to gain a total of 74 yards and junior quarterback Greg Kilgore?s, ?07, scored the lone touchdown on a 3-yard run.

?We really stepped it up and grew as a team in the first half, often frustrating Immanuel,? John Hall said, varsity head coach said. ?Due to our inexperience, we fell apart in the second half and have been overmatched against both CVC and Immanuel.?

Though the team suffers from two non-league losses, they remain hopeful towards future wins against upcoming league rivals.

?While we may have lost our first two games, that first half against Immanuel is what we plan on giving us hope and inspiration for the games ahead,? coach Hall said in response to the remaining season.

FC has only beaten Immanuel twice in the 15-year series and the last time to open the season in 2002.

The team?s next game will be against Strathmore on Sept. 16 at Clark Intermediate in Clovis. For more information concerning the Strathmore game, please contact the high school office at 299-1695, ext. 5.