Dixon, Oregon ready to open season with friendly rivalry game

Every fall, the first football Friday brings with it a chance for teams to finally hit players from another team, and see how they stack up under the lights.

For Dixon and Oregon, there’s the added bonus of playing a friendly rival from 16 miles up Route 2 to open the 2021 season.

“We roll right into it,” Dixon coach Jared Shaner said. “And I’m sure they feel the same way, but it’s fun for us … we enjoy playing everybody, but when a school is 15, 16 miles down the road, that makes it something a little bit more special. These kids know the Oregon kids, and I think it does just make it even more fun.

“Week 1 is exciting for everybody, but when you get two teams that are close together, we sure hope that the stands are packed with our fans and their fans. We just want it to be a great environment for Friday night football.”

Dixon comes in with experience and talent, having lost just four seniors from the team last spring. Senior Jacob Gaither returns at quarterback, after leading the Dukes in rushing (362 yards, 2 TDs) and passing (621 yards, 7 TDs, 2 INTs) in their four-game spring season. Two of his top targets also return in Jacob Gusse (15 catches, 179 yards, 3 TDs) and Hunter Gehrt (8 catches, 125 yards, 3 TDs).

The Dukes went 1-3 in the spring, but all three losses were by seven points or less, and the win was by one point over Stillman Valley on a late Gaither-to-Gehrt touchdown toss. Those close losses served as lessons learned for an experienced team – and also some motivation.

“We just have to focus, keep our minds straight, and we can’t lose that fourth quarter,” senior Mitchell White said. “Last season, we lost some fourth quarters, and that’s how we lost those games by five or seven or two points, whatever it was. So we’ve just got to stay focused through the whole game and I think we’ll be just fine.”

The Hawks had a senior-laden roster last spring, which means a lot of new players need to step up. But the Dukes expect the same tough-minded team from Oregon that they’ve seen for more than two decades.

“They’re going to pound it at you,” Shaner said. “You know those kids are going to be well-coached and they’re also going to be physical on both sides of the ball.”

“I think they’re a good team, and I think we’re ready to show out Friday night and play a good, tough ballgame,” Mitchell added. “We’re stocked for Friday night, and we’re going to bring it all to the field.”

The lack of experience has forced Oregon coach Nick Schneiderman to make a few adjustments here and there to help his younger players focus on playing instead of overthinking. Former Oregon hall-of-fame coach John Bothe has taken over the defense, and Schneiderman expects his players to be ready to play hard and compete well on Friday night at A.C. Bowers Field.

“We’ve made some tweaks here and there, putting the guys in the right spots so the kids can just play, just compete at their best level,” Schneiderman said. “Scheme-wise, we’ve adjusted from last year’s squad since we were so senior-dominant, just making some adjustments on offense and defense, putting guys in more of a stable position where they can concentrate on one spot, and the kids are learning those well.”

The biggest goal for teams in Week 1 is to see how well the players have learned the system, see how they react under the brights lights, and see what adjustments need to be made and what things need to be worked on to prepare for the rest of the season.

The players just want to start on the right foot and get that first notch in the win column.

“The goals are the same as always: concentrate on Game 1 and win that,” Oregon senior Daniel Dominguez said. “You always want to win that first game of the season, start off strong, and take that into the second game, and then the next game, and keep going from there.”