Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – The Eureka players at last weekend’s scrimmage.

By Ray Hamill — The Eureka Loggers have been forced to cancel their season opener in football because of COVID Protocols.

The game against Foothill had been scheduled for this Friday night at Albee Stadium.

The Loggers were missing 10 players for last weekend’s preseason scrimmage because of COVID protocols and had hoped to have most of them back for the Foothill game, but contact tracing has left them without enough players to safely field a team.

“The big picture is we’re okay, we’re healthy, were moving around, and with what’s going on in the world, we can’t complain,” head coach Andrew Haraldson said. “But it’s definitely a sad day for our guys.”

Several position groups on the roster have been affected.

“I think it’s what’s best for the kids, as much as I hate canceling a game,” Haraldson said.

As of right now, the Eureka JVs will still play Foothill at Albee on Friday at 5 p.m.

However, if the Foothill coaches are able to schedule another varsity game at the last minute they will likely also take their JVs to the new venue.

The Loggers, who were undefeated in the spring, are now scheduled to open the new season at Windsor on Sept. 3, but that will depend on testing later this week and early next week.

With the cancellation, the Loggers could add a game on Sept. 24, which is scheduled to be their bye week.

“That’s definitely a possibility,” Haraldson said.