Cambridge Bears 'Boys' Turning Into Men on the Field

The Cambridge Bears, most of whom had never played in a varsity football game before, had their first game and first loss on Friday night in the inaugural game at the new school, falling 48-0 to Riverwood.

Head Coach Craig Bennett refused to make excuses for the results, but he wouldn't lay any blame on his players, either.

"This is not an excuse by any means, we got maybe two or three kids that's played on a Friday night. And we got a lot of of growing up to do. That's what we've got to work on and get better. That's all we can do, and all we can ask of our kids," Bennett said.

"We've got to do a better job as coaches. And that starts with me, I'll take responsibiilty for the product we put on the field. We knew we were young, but we also have got to coach them as well," he said.

"I think we had some kids grow up. J.D. White did a good job, he ran the ball hard. We had a lot of kids step up. A.J. Campbell stepped up," Bennett said. "Adversity sometimes brings out good and brings out bad, and we saw some good things tonight."

The facilities are phenomenal, Bennett said. The support for the team matches that. Almost all the fans stayed at the game until the clock ran out, despite the score.

"I'm overwhelmed with the support not only from our administration, but our staff, our community, our students. You just can't ask for anything better," he said.

Principal Ed Spurka offered his thoughts at the end of the game as well.

"The community never lost spirit, they were here until the end of the game," Spurka said. "The marching band played the alma mater at the very end. We are just blessed with a great community here. You couldn't ask for more support."

"This whole new school thing is a process, and we can't lose sight of that," Spurka said. "The kids have come a long way. Six months ago I was walking out here and there was dirt out here. Look now and we've got a packed crowd out here. I couldn't be more proud."

If the school had not started with a varsity program, it wouldn't have had any juniors or seniors on the team, Spurka said.

"Some school systems open up with just ninth grade and tenth grade," he said.

"Our varsity girls softball team won their first game here. They appreciated having varsity competition," Spurka said.

"Our young boys had to become young men pretty fast. It will be a learning experience for us," the school's principal said.