BY KEVIN FRIEDENBERG

In print | Published April 1, 2007

Football fans, get ready for some gridiron madness coming at you next fall! The Sunday Showdown has come back to campus! Swarthmore College has decided to reinstate the football program, which it unceremoniously cut in 2000. This news came as a shock to the many loyal football fans who believed that their beloved Garnet had played pigskin for the last time many years ago. “The decision to bring back our football program was a complicated and difficult one, but one nonetheless that we in the athletic department feel will benefit our college,” Athletic Director Adam Hertz said. The Garnet will compete in the Centennial Conference and will face many opponents who never cut football, which means the Garnet may have some rebuilding ahead of them.

But just who will populate this new team? With a roster open to about 70 players, the new football staff will have quite a task ahead of them. Fortunately for those high school heroes out there, there will be open tryouts.

“I’m excited about the opportunity,” Stelios Wilson ‘09 said. "I’ve thrown the ball casually for the last few years and those I’ve played with know that I’m the most highly qualified quarterback this school has."

However, those tryout hopefuls like Wilson may have to compete with some transfers and recruits that the coaching staff has closely scouted and lured away from other programs. Top high school running back Noel Divine, from North Fort Myers, Florida, points to a state championship on his left hand and states, “The other four fingers are lonely. I know I’m going to bring success to Swarthmore College because there ain’t a single man, beast or machine that can catch me when I go to work,” Divine said. “Besides, none of the other schools are paying me as well as Swarthmore.” There were also rumors floating around that an undisclosed star linebacker from the SEC was considering taking an overnight to the Swarthmore campus.

Some people wonder where the money is coming from to fund this new program, along with the 15,000-seat stadium, which has been planned for opening in the fall at Cunningham Field. This construction will be taking the place of the construction of the new Kemp Hall dormitory, and the students slated to live in that dorm will simply be forced to leave the college. “Originally finding money for the football program was like searching for water in the desert,” College President Al Bloom said. “However, once we decided to cut the peace and conflict studies and environmental studies departments, the funding was freed up.” One of the main expenses in this new program was the hiring of a new coach who would allow the new team to rise like a phoenix from the ashes of the old. Bloom calls hiring retired coaching legend Jim Mora Sr. out of retirement “the best $2.2 million I’ve ever spent.” Mora’s resume is quite impressive as he was able to take some of the worst teams in the NFL and turn them into repeat playoff teams. Mora will preach and teach a solid ground game and a stifling defense, which he believes will be the key to success for such a fledgling program.

When asked about the potential of taking this new team to the Centennial Conference playoffs, Mora nearly exploded, exclaiming, “Playoffs! Don’t talk about playoffs! You kidding me!? Playoffs?!” Clearly he believes that some work is in order before the season. It seems logical, though, that with such a distinguished coach, and several high-priced transfers, the Swarthmore Garnet could be a legitimate competitor in the Centennial Conference for years to come.

Open tryouts will be held during reading week later in May this year. Candidates are advised to bring a pair of cleats, a no-nonsense attitude and a “fun fee” of $200. The coaching staff also suggests undergoing a physical examination prior to the tryouts as not every person may be at the sufficiently healthy level to play football.

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