SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — After a battle in court and lots of added COVID-19 safety precautions, high school football players will return to the gridiron playing in their first game since the pandemic shut everything down.
"I'm super excited, I couldn't be more prepared and excited to go back out there, it's been over a year now," Scripps Ranch High School quarterback Luke Durkin says.
Luke and his mom, Melanie, thought this day would never come: the moment Luke would finally put his jersey back on and play in his first football game of his senior year.
Getting to this point hasn’t been easy, as they dealt with school closures and COVID-19 restrictions, including rigid testing and a reduced schedule.
But, part of those restrictions includes the San Diego Unified School District’s decision not to allow spectators, which Melanie says is now forcing families to find other ways to catch a glimpse of the game.
"I haven't figured out if I'm going to stand at the fence shoulder to shoulder with so many families which is not going to have much social distancing, or if I'm going to try to watch the live stream that we're trying to get working right now," Melanie said.
Though that part is still up in the air, the Durkin family says today the focus is simple, high school football is back.
"We haven’t dropped that fight. But, right now, today it’s game day and we’ll pick up that fight tomorrow and try to get up in the stands next Friday," said Melanie.
