Pre-season is over

There's no denying that the 2009 football season was very un-Columbia like. The 2009 Crimson Tide was 0-10 and blown out of perhaps all by three games
But as they say, that was last year.
The 2010 season is a new beginning for the program as Michael Burke III takes over the reigns of the football program, which completed its pre-season tonight with a 75-minute scrimmage under the lights at Hanover's Sheppard-Myers Field.
Outside of a couple of long plays by Hanover on missed Columbia assignments, things are looking up for the Tide, who opens its season next Friday night with a home game on the hill with cross-river rival Eastern.
Tonight, the Tide moved the ball pretty good, scoring three times.
There wee two series of 10 and 10 plays, before the Tide and Nighthawks played a couple of series of down and distance.
In the first series of 10 and 10, the Tide moved the ball to the Hanover 24 before running out of plays. When the Nighthawks got their 10 plays, they scored midway through the series on a play set up by a 39-yard pass reception. The pass play was a breakdown on defense by the Tide, which went from the 45 to the Tide 16.
Columbia came right back on their next 10 and 10 series on a 3-yard run by Brock Taylor.
On the first series of game conditions (down and distance), Columbia moved the ball to the Hanover 9, before an interception near the end zone negated the threat.
Hanover then got the football and were faced with a 4th and 12th from their own 12. The didn't punt but ripped off a huge gainer on a fullback dive to the Columbia 35. But Hanover could not score and the Tide got the ball back.
The Tide needed three plays to score on a 73-yard pass and run from Tyler Harrison to Michael Burke IV. Seth Lefever converted the PAT.
But on the first play on offense, Hanover ripped off a 70-yard run, but badly missed the PAT.
There was one more offensive series for the Tide. This time it was a 71-yard pass from Harrison to D.J. Wells for a score.
NOTES: Columbia played the scrimmage without starting center Casey Rapp. Cain Warfel and Dion Matthews were the fill ins. Matthews was injured at the end of the first 10 and 10 series.