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Friday Night Lights

High school football preview: Bishop Grimes

Courtesy of Jason Wait

Bishop Grimes' running back Tyler Wait (left) speaks with his teammates at an offseason scrimmage. Others in the huddle include AJ Burnett, Jr. (No. 7) and Nate Gay (No. 81).

By Billy HeyenSenior Staff Writer

Eight-man football was created in part to make smaller schools competitive, and Bishop Grimes took advantage in the first season of Section III’s eight-man division. In its final season playing traditional 11-man football, the Cobras went 2-5. But in its debut eight-man season, Bishop Grimes went 6-0 and won the first ever Section III 8-man championship.

As the season approaches, Bishop Grimes’ players want a repeat. Here’s a preview of how they plan to do it.

2017 record: 6-0; inaugural Section III 8-man division champions

Head Coach: Jason Wait, entering fourth season as head coach

Driving distance from SU: 6.3 miles



Players from last year’s team who graduated: Seven

Notable returns:
  • Nate Gay, WR/CB, Senior
  • Dalton Damuth, OL/DL, Senior
  • Tyler Wait, RB/WR/CB, Senior
  • TJ Bradford, WR/CB, Senior

Opening game: Sectional final rematch with New York Mills; Sept. 15, noon at Bishop Grimes

Key Storylines:
  • A sophomore quarterback, yet to be fully decided in preseason competition, will be replacing a four-year starter
  • The quest to repeat as eight-man sectional champions as more teams join the division
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What they’re saying:
  • Head coach Jason Wait: “You realize that you’re starting the year with a target … You know other teams are looking to be the first team to beat you.”
  • Jason Wait: “Grimes was not a winning program for a long time, 30 years. To have the junior class and sophomore class see that last year, what it was like to win and feel that. Your seniors go on, they’re graduated, and now your junior class has come up. It’s been nonstop of, ‘Let’s do it again, we can do this.’”
  • RB/WR/CB Tyler Wait: “Win it again. If there’s states, we want to win states. And I think there’s a national championship, down in Florida or something. If we do that, that’d be cool. That’d be sick.”
  • OL/DL Dalton Damuth: “We lost some big players, quarterback, wide receiver, but the young kids we have coming in are pretty good. I feel good about this year.”
  • FB/LB Colin Cavanaugh: “It felt great having an undefeated season, let alone wins for the first time in a long time.”

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