New faces abound at Nation Ford practice

Whether it is reloading or rebounding has yet to be determined, but a bevy of new faces line the football field at Nation Ford High.

With only two returning starters on offense and six on defense, head coach Michael Allen described this year’s Falcons team as somewhat of a melting pot. And so far, he said, the new ingredients are blending well.

“We had a real good summer,” he said. “There was a lot of energy and a lot of excitement. They have meshed well together.”

Nation Ford will have a new quarterback in either Kirk Rygol or Chris Layle, both seniors. The Falcons will have Alex Stennett and Colt Taylor returning to help catch passes. And while junior Ben Tuipulotu is more of a defensive specialist, don’t be surprised to see him at wide receiver as well.

The Falcons are trying to shore up the running back position.

Nation Ford gets its first opportunity to start putting the pieces together Saturday when it takes on Fairfield Central in a scrimmage at home. After that the Falcons have one more scrimmage left in the preseason before opening at home Aug. 19 against Irmo.

After the home opener, Nation Ford won’t return home until Sept. 16 against Lancaster. The following week, Sept. 23, the Falcons will play Indian Land. That one is at home as well.

The Falcons close out the regular season with home games against Northwestern Oct. 21 and Fort Mill Oct. 28.

This story was originally published August 2, 2016 at 2:02 PM with the headline "New faces abound at Nation Ford practice."