Exhibition football games can always be interesting.

Opposing coaches get together over the phone, or during pre-game warm-up to discuss their teams’ status, and sometimes act the best of friends.

Exhibition football games can always be interesting.

Opposing coaches get together over the phone, or during pre-game warm-up to discuss their teams’ status, and sometimes act the best of friends.

They also discuss how many plays they should run today against one another, or where to place the ball on the field while running those plays.

There is no yelling at referee before, during or after the game. They are there to get some practice in before the season gets going as well.

Just about the only thing not set up is how many fans will show up during the 120-play exhibition game.

Each team getting 60 plays on offense, and 60 plays on defense.

This is the only time of the season where the score isn’t posted on a scoreboard and that it doesn’t really matter.

The boys get to hit someone else besides their own teammates for the first time this season, but yet it is all, ‘glorified practice.’

The Sedona Red Rock High Scorpions football team traveled to Page High for an exhibition game Friday, Aug. 17, or should I say, glorified practice.

Page is certainly the bigger  of the two, as they are in the 4A-II Grand Canyon conference.

“The game against Page was good for us to see where we are at as a team,” Sedona head coach Brian Batty said.

On the offensive side of the ball, Sedona scored three touchdowns on the Page defensive front.

Junior starting quarterback Sammy Holeyfield threw for two touchdowns, while completing eight of his 20 passes.

The first score was a 60-yard strike to wide-out Jordan Burke, who caught the ball 25 yards down field and ran the other 35 by himself.

Then, junior wide receiver George Saucedo caught a 30-yard pass from Holeyfield to go in for the score.

“Sammy [Holeyfield] is coming along nicely. There was a few dropped passes, and a few bad throws, but for the most part he did OK,” Batty said.

The other touchdown was scored on the ground as senior Tyler Horchak scored on a 10-yard sprint to the goal line.

As for the Scorpions defense, it was ready and willing to stop all that the Sand Devils had to offer.

“They looked so gassed in the middle of the game, I couldn’t believe it,” Batty said.

Page began to tire half way through the scrimmage as Sedona dominated the line of scrimmage.

The Sand Devils did happen to score on the Sedona defense, but it wasn’t until both coaches agreed to run 10 plays each on the goal line.

Even so, the Sedona defense held for the first five plays Page ran from inside the 5-yard

line.

“Our defense played very well, the players really stepped up,” Batty said.

What Batty thought was most impressive was the play of the young bloods.

“Our freshman and sophomores got in for the last 15 plays or so, and they did really well out there,” Batty said.

Freshmen Troy Laparco and Kyle Chartier were among those that impressed Batty.

The Scorpions will do it for real this week. This time it will be against Needles High of California.

The game is considered a home game for the Scorpions but will be held Saturday, Aug. 25, at the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome on the campus of Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff.

Kickoff is set for 10 a.m.

Brian Bergner Jr. can be reached at 282-7795, Ext. 131, or e-mail to bbergner@larsonnewspapers.com