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PREP FOOTBALL: Shenandoah cancels season

cigaretteman

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Shenandoah High School has canceled the remainder of its 2022 varsity football season, Activities Director Jon Weinrich announced Tuesday.
The cancellation comes as three games remain on the schedule, with many season-ending injuries making it difficult to field the varsity roster.
“Unfortunately we have been decimated by injuries from the start of the season,” Shenandoah head coach Ty Ratliff said. “This led us to putting younger athletes in a very difficult position on Fridays. Our top priority as a staff is the safety and well-being of all athletes every day. Unfortunately, the injuries continued and put us in a difficult spot going forward.”
The Mustangs lost Friday’s Homecoming game against Clarke 94-0 and Weinrich said discussions about this possibility between school administration and the football coaching staff started soon after.




“After the game Friday, we were very aware we were putting our student-athletes in a tough position,” Weinrich said. “We had several discussions as a team over the weekend and into Monday when we ultimately came to the conclusion we came up with.”

Weinrich said the team was brought in Tuesday morning and told about the decision. That included the small senior group, who see their football careers end earlier than expected.
“We did have conversations with the seniors about what could happen,” Weinrich said. “They were very honest and we appreciate everything they have done for Shenandoah football. Our heart breaks that this is happening to them their senior year.”


Ratliff said he appreciates the seniors and what they have given to the program during their careers.
“They have been strong leaders for these underclassmen and we thank them for everything they gave us,” Ratliff said.

Shenandoah had three games remaining in the varsity season and Weinrich knows this affects the Clarinda, Greene County and Des Moines Christian programs as well. Those three teams will receive forfeit wins for their scheduled games against Shenandoah. They will all also receive the maximum 17 points of point differential for district tiebreak procedures.

“We understand there will be some upset feelings and we also know other towns are affected by this decision,” Weinrich said. “As stated though, ultimately our priority is to the health and safety of Shenandoah athletes.”

The Mustangs will play out the rest of their junior varsity schedule. They’ll host Clarinda Monday, Oct. 3, and travel to Mount Ayr Monday, Oct. 10.
The full release that was sent to local media and on the schoolwide alert system:
“We have made the difficult decision to cancel the rest of the 2022 varsity football season. This decision comes after many difficult conversations. Ultimately, our top priority was the health, safety and well-being of our football players. Due to numerous season-ending injuries by some of our most experienced players, we cannot adequately or safely field a varsity team for the rest of this season. Our goal for all activities is to provide a positive experience and build excitement for the future. We look forward to developing these players at the junior varsity level and will do everything possible to prepare for more success in the future.”



With the three scheduled games counting as forfeit losses, the Shenandoah football season ends with a 2-6 overall record, 0-5 in Class 2A District 8. Seniors Beau Gardner, Blake Herold, Ben Labrum and Tysen Shaw exit the program.

 
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