The boys are back in town. Despite an abrupt mid-year end to the 2008 football season, the Eagles are 30 strong this season and ready to compete on Friday nights.

While preparing for the first game, Sept. 11, team members say they have developed into a stronger team. First-year assistant coach Ervin Hernandez says the upcoming season is “full of potential.”

“This year there’s going to be a lot of excitement because the team gained a lot of unity over the summer,” Hernandez said. “All the guys are really jazzed about what’s going to be happening. Because of all the hard work they’ve put in over the summer, they’re going to reap what they have sowed on Friday nights.”

In addition to attending practice each Tuesday and Thursday over summer break, a select few chose to work out with linemen coach David Dixon four times a week on campus. The group occasionally worked out twice a day; both lifting in the weight room and running circuits on the field.

Tackle and right guard Nathaniel Nyberg, ’10, devoted enough time to conditioning over summer break to gain 15 pounds of muscle. According to Nyberg, the improvement will likely boost his play this season.

“All of the lifting and weight that I have gained this summer will greatly help me in driving through the offensive line,” Nyberg said. “[Senior Daniel] Hopper and I have become so much more explosive, which is vital in helping to make sacks in a game.”

Unlike those on past teams, this year’s senior class made a pact over the summer to attend every single practice – a promise they have kept.

“The seniors have done an excellent job attending practices,” Hernandez said. “They have been obedient servants of God this whole summer. When they are at practice, they put their whole heart into it.”

Although their 2008 season came up short , the coaching staff believes this year’s program is already a winner. In an effort to inspire a unified mindset among the coaches, head coach Bonner Cunnings provided each man with a copy of the book Called to Battle Destined to Win, by Jerry Savelle.

“It’s already been written [in the Bible] that we are winners,” Hernandez said. “The coaching staff has this mentality, and we’ve got this whole sort of motivation going on which plays onto the practice field.”

At the conclusion of each practice, Cunnings encourages his players through reading the Bible. He also prompts them to seek scripture in their everyday lives.

“We have determined to live a life for Jesus in all we do and that involves our sporting events,” Cunnings said. “We are truly ‘loving the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength.’ What honor would it bring Christ if we kept him out of football? For him to bless everything in our lives, he needs access to everything.”

The Eagles spent a day at Yosemite High School, Cunnings’ alma mater, in a conjoined practice with the Badgers, July 16.

“We wanted to get better as a football team, but we also had another goal in mind,” Hernandez said. “We prayed for their team, because there’s a lot of stuff going on over at their school. We went over there not only as football players but also as servants of God.”

Following the practice Cunnings led a short Bible study, where a few FC players shared their personal testimonies. Afterward any players with questions about the Bible or Christianity were invited to speak to an FC coach or player.

After attending Yosemite for the first two years of high school, senior Tim Miller was able to connect with his former friends, and lead one of the players to Christ.

“I started talking to my friends about there being a heaven and a hell, and how you have to know where your going, Miller said. “My friend Jesse called me the next day and said, ‘I’m in, I want to do this Christian thing with you.’ I said the sinner’s prayer with him and now he’s a believer.”

Hernanadez reiterated the team’s goal of spreading God to the world with the guise of football.

“That’s just one kid that was able to show the light through football, and now we have a new believer,” Hernandez said. “All this prayer and we got one guy. We sparked a little fire there and now there’s amazing things that are going to happen there.”

In another attempt to benefit the community, the team took a trip to Children’s Hospital Central California to bring presents and hang out with patients.

While the team’s most recent endeavors have focused on serving others, their attention shifts to raising money for their program at the Football Kickoff dinner, Sept. 29.

Unlike in years past, this year’s event will feature food booths and carnival like activities for attendees.

The Eagles will first take the field against Stone Ridge Christian, Sept. 11, at Clark Intermediate.

For more information about the football team, read the upcoming sport shorts.