ALTON - Alton High's football game scheduled for this Friday night at East St. Louis has been cancelled, and the Redbirds will forfeit the game to the Flyers, due to a lack of varsity players available.
In a press release issued Wednesday morning, Alton High athletic director Chris Kusnerick said that the lack of players would make it impossible for the Redbirds to field a team for Friday's game at Clyde C. Jordan Stadium.
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"Alton High will forfeit the game to East St. Louis due to the lack of varsity players available," Kusnerick said in the press release. "None of the players have COVID on our team currently. The entire COVID pandemic challenges we are all facing has left our roster at 40 total players (9-12) going into this football season. Normally, we would have 65 to 70 kids out for football. For various reasons not related to the virus we do not have enough varsity level players available to play the game vs East St. Louis on Friday."
The Redbirds were preparing to face East Side, coming off a 31-7 loss to Edwardsville in the opener of the abbreviated and long-delayed season last Friday night.
The home game against O'Fallon, set for April 2, is still scheduled and set to be played. The Redbirds also have games scheduled April 9 at Belleville East, April 16 at home against Belleville West, and a game against a Southwestern Conference opponent on April 23, with the team and site to be determined.
