It’s a few weeks later than normal for a season to start. Only four family members are allowed at each game. That hasn’t diminished the community enthusiasm for the Stanley- Boyd Orioles football, not to mention how the team is approaching this season.’ The Stanley-Boyd Orioles: Version 2020 is going to be an exciting team to watch and even hard to keep up with.

“It’s great having the guys out there and practice is fun,” Coach Jeff Koenig said Saturday morning. “The scrimmage last night was fun. It’s just been great to be back out there playing. Yes, there’s a heightened sense of caution, and the guys have been good about following all the precautions we’re taking, but it’s just really been a lot of fun.

Players and coaches were excited to find out that football was given the green light by the WIAA, and it’s a year of uncertainty in a lot of ways. The Cloverbelt Conference is much changed. Gone are Altoona, Cadott and Colby. The Cloverbelt is going to be a powerhouse football conference featuring the Orioles, Fall Creek, Neillsville/Granton, Osseo-Fairchild and Regis joined by newcomers Durand, Elk Mound and Mondovi. Mondovi played in the Division 4 state championship game last year, and Elk Mound has 22 seniors on its roster.

“We lost some great rivalry games with Cadott and Colby moving to other conferences. We won’t play games that traditionally we’ve played every year, but we had some really great teams move in,” said Koenig. “It’s a tough conference.”

What the Orioles lack in physical size they certainly make up for in team speed.

“The team is fast,” said Koenig. “We had a lot of youth playing last year. A lot of guys got experience, and they’re a year more mature. They’re faster. They’re stronger. Just in the scrimmage last night you can see how they’ve grown as football players and athletes from last year. It was exciting to see. Obviously, there are tweaks we have to make, and we have a lot of work to do. We’re far from perfect, but just seeing them take a step forward maturity-wise and athletically, it’s been fun to watch. It’s fun at practice. We’re fast. We’re not big like we have been some years. We’re small, but we’re quick, and hopefully that can pay off for us.

The team is hopeful of getting through this season without COVID-19 affecting its schedule. The WIAA has protocols in place that can move football to the spring if a team doesn’t make it halfway through its season because of the pandemic.

“Hopefully we can play everything we’re scheduled to play. Already around the state, some games are having to adjust their schedules, moving games and canceling games,” said Koenig. “We’ll see how the season plays out. Our goal is to play as long as we can, so that means taking precautions and doing what we can to stay safe. We’re going to keep doing that, because we want to be playing as long as we can.”

While the Orioles are young, they feature some solid leadership in their upper-class ranks. Seniors include Minnesota Moorhead commit Bo Chwala and Carter Vait at wide receiver and linebacker, and Russell Dorn, Wyatt Copenhaver, Tyler Krizan and Jacob Schneider on the line.

The Orioles junior class has already logged a lot of varsity minutes, with running backs Mike Karlen and Cooper Nichols minutes, featuring Mike Karlen, Cooper Nichols, Carsen Hause, Easter Walters, Luke Smith, Brady Potaczek, Jacob Nesterick, Jared Fitzl, Blake Marion and Tyler Reynolds.

Sophomores on the squad are: Logan Burzynski, Isaac Brenner, Dominic Raffetto, Zachary Ciszak, Sam Sprinkle, Aiden Mahr, Braydon Miller and Grant Hatfield.

Freshman include Landen Hoel, Haydn Gustafson, Carson Oemig, Jonathin Heller, Chase Sturm, Breckin Burzynski, Landon Karlen, Blake Mellor, Blake Paul, Ayden Marten, Robert Poole, Parker Krizan, Tate Derks, Riley Weltzin, Henry Hoel and Reece Trunkel.

Keep an eye on this year’s team. They’re going to try to outrun a lot of teams, starting Friday at 7 p.m. against Fall Creek.