The idea of playing a high school football game on a Sunday afternoon is not something Bridgeport Coach John Cole considers appealing. However, given the option of that or what he and his team dealt with this past weekend, he will take the Sunday game.

 

That is what the Indians now have. Thanks to the color-coded state COVID-19 metric map, the Indians will be on the road to face Class AAA top-ranked Cabell Midland at 4 p.m. in Ona.

 

BHS did not get there the traditional way. The No. 5 Indians advanced by way of forfeit through no fault of their or their opponent Martinsburg. On Saturday, Berkeley County was in the wrong color of the COVID-19 map and the game was ruled a forfeit.

 

The game was supposed to be played at 3 p.m. Saturday. The Indians were supposed to find out if that game was possible at 10 a.m. Saturday morning when the DHHR released its color-coded map.

 

The map was delayed by about 20 minutes. And so was BHS and its road trip to the panhandle that eventually never took place.

 

“We were literally sitting at a park and ride at the Cheat Lake exit waiting for the word,” said Cole. “I don’t think, rather I know, I have ever been in that situation.”

 

For those wondering why the Indians were waiting, it was a financial one. Cole said the team had chartered buses for the trip and to avoid paying the full cost, school buses took them to the Cheat Lake exit.

 

“The buses were going to meet us there and were coming out of Masontown and could be there quickly,” said Cole. “I wanted to leave at 9:30, but you also don’t want to be on the hook financially for a whole lot of money. When the map was late, I just decided we were going to wait as long as we had to, and if we were late for the game then we were late for the game.”

 

There will be no waiting for Sunday’s game. Bridgeport will know Saturday at 5 p.m. if the game with Cabell Midland is on or not.

 

“Not getting in a situation like we had (Saturday) makes playing Sunday more bearable,” said Cole. “This whole thing is one change after another.”

 

Cole said he has never played or coached a game on Sunday. He is not sure that Bridgeport has ever played a game on Sunday because he said it has not been allowed in football going back to his playing days in the 1980s.

 

“If all things were normal, and they’re definitely not normal, you would prefer to not play on a Sunday because a game with Cabell Midland is going to be physical. Whoever advances is going to feel it physically,” said Cole. “If we’re fortunate to advance, it will probably be Wednesday before we hit again.”

 

Whoever advances will be in a state title game that typically is held at Wheeling Island Stadium. Due to COVID-19, the championship site for all three classifications – whoever gets there by win or forfeit – is undetermined as well. While that is a hurdle Cole and the Indians hope to be challenged with, Cole knows things continue to be different.

 

“To an extent, there are a lot of logistics involved people may not know about, particularly on a long road trip. It is more involved than just getting buses,” said Cole. “It’s not just us. It’s everyone that’s fortunate to still be playing.”

 

Travis Jones, “The Voice of the Indians,” who runs the bridgeportindiansfootball.com Web site, said he believes this is the first game ever for the Tribe on Sunday. The only dates he could not confirm were a few from the 1940s.

 

Editor's Note: Photos courtesy of Karey Kirkpatrick. Cover photo by Ben Queen Photography.