The laces are tied, the pads are on and the helmets are polished. The boys of fall are ready for a new season on the gridiron.

Sedona Red Rock High School football played the 2011 season significantly better than its 1-9 season two years ago. The Scorpions ended with a 4-6 record, the best success the team had since 2004. They just missed a .500 record and a trip to the playoffs by one touchdown in the ninth game, against Williams High School.

Yet, what made the team strong was the large number of upperclassmen. This season, the team will have five seniors and six juniors. The rest of the team is younger.

“Last year our numbers were better than this year,” SRRHS football Head Coach Rick Walsworth said. “The players are young guys on both sides of the ball, but they are a great group.”

As a way to get the SRRHS football program into a winning program, Walsworth upgraded the weight room and instituted a weight-lifting program for the players, something Walsworth believes a team has to do in order to be successful in high school football.

For the full story, please see the Wednesday, Aug. 22, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.