On Friday, October 27, the Dogs battled hard against Durango, the third-ranked team in the state, ending their last home game in an unfortunate loss 0 to 19. The Palisade Bulldogs are known for their outstanding football team for winning four state championship titles back to back in the 90s as well as a state championship title in 2003 but have experienced a few hard seasons in the last few years. Brandon Mohr, a teacher at Palisade High School is an assistant coach for the Palisade Bulldog football team and shared his insight on the most recent game. Mohr states, “I think we played with good effort, I think our kids got after it, and they really try and care about the game. In the end, Durango was a better team.” The Bulldogs have a record of 3-6 this year hopeful to win their last game of the season this week to end 4-6. The team experienced some difficulties of having a very young team at one point having two freshmen and three sophomores in the offensive line. Mohr explains how the team only had four seniors in which a lot of the varsity team is made up of sophomores and freshmen who played significant minutes. Mohr says, “Defensively, we played well, we got put in some situations offensively that we could’ve executed a little bit better, but the kids are giving good effort.” Mohr explains how Palisade hasn’t had a losing season in a very long time, so having two consecutive years of not the level of competitiveness that they are used to, is sometimes a hard thing to overcome. Mohr says, “I think the most difficult thing that the team experienced was adversity. Injuries, and losing games can also play a big role in the confidence of the team. The adversity of being able to bounce back, and continue to fight is admirable about the team. We started the season out in 0-5, and you would think that that would cause our team to crumble, but our attitudes were very positive and I was super proud of how they were able to push through losing so many games, comparable to what we’ve been in the past.” Not only did these athletes embody hard work and dedication, but also grew together in maturity. From senior to freshman, the athletes have stuck together and been one family. Mohr says, “Knowing that we are returning pretty much everyone next year, it’s very exciting to know that we have a bright future ahead of us and put that loss behind us.” The Bulldogs are ready to go into this final game against Glenwood on Friday with fight and resilience. Although having a hard season, these athletes showed great persistence, as well as sticking together as a mature, dedicated team, and have a very exciting future ahead of them.
