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No time to waste at Ridgefield’s midnight football practice

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The Ridgefield Spudders got into a football stance as soon as possible Wednesday with a midnight practice on the first official day of high school football practice. Photo by Paul Valencia
The Ridgefield Spudders got into a football stance as soon as possible Wednesday with a midnight practice on the first official day of high school football practice. Photo by Paul Valencia

A pre-season kickoff party was followed by the team’s first practice of the 2023 season

Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com

RIDGEFIELD — It is simply the way it is in Ridgefield nowadays.

If you play for the Spudders, you know where you will be at 12:01 a.m. on the first day of high school football practice.

You’ll be on the field.

This year, the seniors came in a little early. No, not to practice. That would be against the rules. Instead, they took pictures — marketing pics, to be used on social media and to be made into banners that will hang on the walls of the stadium.

At 10:30 p.m., the whole team gathered for a pre-practice meeting to tackle a serious subject: Is it cake and ice cream, or is it ice cream and cake?

The stadium lights came on at about 11:45 p.m., and the players made their way to the field to be ready to go at exactly 12:01 a.m. Yes, the Spudders gave themselves a minute to process the fact that Wednesday had arrived.

It was, finally, go time.

The gate that welcomes fans to Ridgefield’s football stadium, shown Tuesday night just before the stadium lights came on for Ridgefield’s Midnight Madness football practice. Photo by Paul Valencia
The gate that welcomes fans to Ridgefield’s football stadium, shown Tuesday night just before the stadium lights came on for Ridgefield’s Midnight Madness football practice. Photo by Paul Valencia

“Honestly, it’s just a great way to get the guys fired up,” said senior Danny McDonnell. “We’ve been looking forward to it all summer, just to come out here at midnight, knowing that we are here before everybody else. We’re putting that work in as soon as possible. It’s just a great feeling. To share that with these guys, it’s just amazing.”

Now the pre-practice stuff is fun, and putting on the helmet and taking the field at midnight is memorable, but make no mistake, it is a practice, a real practice.

No time to waste.

The Spudders started practicing at midnight on the first official day of high school football practice in 2018. Ridgefield coach Scott Rice, hired before the 2019 season, kept to that schedule. He wanted something special, something different, to have something to be proud of in the program. When he arrived, there were 38 players in the program.

“We like getting out here,” Rice said. “Especially now going from a 38-kid program to a program with 90 kids in it. We sell it to the guys, mentality wise, we’re in it to get after it and win football games, so let’s start working on it now.”

Ridgefield senior Danny McDonnell said he and his teammates love the tradition at Ridgefield, of being the first football players to get to work at a midnight practice on the first official day of high school football practice. Photo by Paul Valencia
Ridgefield senior Danny McDonnell said he and his teammates love the tradition at Ridgefield, of being the first football players to get to work at a midnight practice on the first official day of high school football practice. Photo by Paul Valencia

Obviously, midnight practice is not the reason the program has attracted so many more numbers through the years. But certainly, that mentality has led to the program’s growth.

As a bonus this year, midnight practice comes in the middle of a Southwest Washington heat wave. The forecast for Wednesday is 102 degrees. 

“I didn’t look at the forecast six months ago,” Rice said when he was putting his practice plan on the calendar.

“But it sure is perfect that it’s 78 degrees on the first whistle. So let’s go,” the coach said.

High school football players across Washington will be practicing Wednesday, the WIAA’s first day of football practice. Technically, most of the players worked out with their teams throughout June and most of July. Some of those days included working in full pads, too. But those drills, practices, or whatever they are called, come to an end on Aug. 1. 

Then, the official first day of practice for the fall football campaign comes on a Wednesday in mid-August. The first Friday night of the regular season is set for Sept. 1.

The next couple of weeks, the next few months will determine how the Ridgefield football season turns out, as far as wins and losses.

But as far as memory makers, the Spudders are already ahead of the game.

“I’m going to remember this for the rest of my life, coming out here every year at midnight,” said McDonnell, a defensive end and offensive lineman. “The hype has been building all summer, and now we’re finally out here. Everybody is excited to be here.”

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