By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
It hasn't really been five years since Washburn University played a football game. It just seems that way.
The Ichabods' last game was a 57-41 MIAA victory at Nebraska-Kearney on Nov. 16, 2019, exactly 17 months as of Friday, before the entire 2020 season wiped out by COVID-19.
Washburn will finally get to line up against another team on Saturday in Golden, Colo., facing the Colorado School of Mines in a 1 p.m. controlled scrimmage.
And while it's not an official game, after more than 500 days of inactivity, the Ichabods are just as excited.
"It's definitely been a long time," Washburn junior defensive back Kevin Neal said. "(We're) 100% approaching it like it's a game. We've been working hard this whole spring, whole winter, two years -- five years it feels like -- so we're definitely treating it like it's a game."
Washburn coach Craig Schurig (left) looks on as the Ichabods go through place-kicking drills Thursday at Yager Stadium. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Most Division I schools still got the opportunity to play at least a partial schedule in 2020, but Ichabods had to sit and watch and do a lot of practicing.
"It was very hard, sitting on the couch on Saturdays," Neal said. "I haven't had that feeling (of playing) in a couple years, but you can take a lot of positives from it. You can see the game from different angles, get to see some things you can improve on coming into our season, so that was definitely a blessing."
"It was very tough for sure," said Ichabod senior quarterback Mitch Schurig, a Washburn Rural product. "Seeing other schools play in the fall, other schools play in the spring. There was some jealousy, some envy, but hopefully it will work out this fall where we get an opportunity to play again."
Washburn scheduled a pair of exhibitions last fall against MIAA opponents Northwest Missouri State and Central Missouri State, but those games were canceled due to COVID protocols.
Washburn's football team goes through stretching drills at the start of Thursday's practice. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Washburn's football team goes through stretching drills at the start of Thursday's practice. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
WU coach Craig Schurig said the cancellations were tough on his team, but he said the Ichabods have done a good job of fighting through the adversity.
"I've been proud of them of the way we focused since then and kept their attention,'' Schurig said. "We didn't have long drawn-out practices. We were pretty short with it and hoped to have short, intense, high-speed (spurts) and then you're done. They had a great attitude about it."
"We've had different player meetings, trying to keep everybody focused in regards to practice because we've been practicing for over a year now against one another," Mitch Schurig said. "It can get kind of tiring with the same old, same old. As players, we have to keep each other focused and accountable to get better when we're out here.''
Craig Schurig, who played quarterback for the Orediggers in the 1980s, said Colorado-Mines was a good fit as a scrimmage opponent.
"It's a natural fit because we've had those games (18 in school history, the most recent in '10) before," Schurig said. "We talked that maybe in the fall we could do it and then it never materialized. We talked and said if we tried to play in the spring, let's keep in touch.
"We just stayed in good contact with each other and we were doing our spring model the same way. After our attempt in the fall, we were just going to shoot for one (this spring) and hope to get it in."
Washburn successfully got through COVID testing Monday and left Friday for Saturday's scrimmage with 75 players, which Craig Schurig said will all see action against the Orediggers, who are a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference..
"You can't count the reps, you've just got to make the reps count for however many you get,'' Mitch Schurig said. "That's everybody's mantra right now.''
Washburn posted a 6-5 record in 2019 while Colorado-Mines was 12-1.
