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Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 12:21 AM

Vaqueros scrimmage in Douglas tonight

Vaqueros scrimmage in Douglas tonight
Robert Perea, The Fernley Reporter

 

After working out all summer in triple digit heat, and then two weeks of hitting each other in practice, the Fernley High School football team has a chance to knock someone else around tonight.

The Vaqueros will scrimmage tonight at Douglas High School in Minden against Douglas and Hug, a pair of 4A schools.

The freshman and JV teams will scrimmage at 6 p.m., followed by the varsity at 7:30 p.m.

Quarterback Ren Arroyo throws a pass during practice on Tuesday, Aug. 9. Arroyo is battling with junior Zach Burns for the starting quarterback position.


Each team will run a series of plays on offense and defense against both other teams.

Coach Chris Ward said several positions on both offense and defense are up for grabs for the varsity squad, and the scrimmage will go a long way to deciding which players will earn starting spots.

“We want to find out those kids that are going to play hard, even tired they’re going to be playing hard,” Ward said. “We tell our kids all the time we can fix mistakes, like if you’re blocking the wrong person, but effort and intensity, that’s hard to fix and that’s what we’re looking for, kids that play with intensity.”

Quarterback is one position up for grabs, with senior Ren Arroyo and junior Zach Burns battling for that spot. Ward said both throw the ball very well, and their skill sets have promoted him to tweak the team’s option offense a little bit. Neither runs as well as last year’s quarterback, Kyle Throckmorton, so Ward has added some new concepts into the passing game to try to take advantage.

“Last year with Kyle, Kyle was a stud on his feet, he really was, so we really sold out on the option part,” Ward said. “That was his strength, so we used that. These kids, they probably aren’t going to be able to run the option as well as Kyle, but they’re going to be able to throw better than Kyle.”

Ward said the Vaqueros won’t get too deep into their playbook in the scrimmage, instead running just a few basic plays.

“We want to make sure that we’ve got our bread and butter for the scrimmage,” Ward said. “We want to see how well we execute on our base stuff. But the biggest thing is we want to be able to play hard and fast.”

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Comment author: Alicia Euresti Comment text: We are all so blessed to have Pastor Matt and Mrs. Regina in this town. They have become a major part of pur family and our children adore them. Thank you both for all you do for qll of us. We love you!!!! Comment publication date: 9/6/26, 9:24 PM Comment source: Fascinating Fernley: Meet Your Neighbors at Living Faith Food Pantry Comment author: R Conley Comment text: Is the deputy receiving any additional training or reinforcing prior training? Comment publication date: 9/5/26, 10:08 AM Comment source: Inmate escapes from Fernley substation Comment author: Kayla Allen Comment text: Suzie was a wonderful woman. I was pleased to call her my "godmother" as she helped me to become a better version of myself. I think about her a lot. Comment publication date: 7/10/26, 8:31 PM Comment source: Susanne Lynn Foster Comment author: Sheena Nash Comment text: After the trivia night is over, I would love for you to print the questions. I grew up in Fernley and would be interested to see how many answers I know. The coin is beautiful. Congrats on 25 years as a city! Comment publication date: 6/22/26, 1:38 PM Comment source: City of Fernley planning 25th anniversary celebration with three days of community events C Comment author: Carl C. Hagen Comment text: Maybe there is more to this story than what is reported, but it seems to me that the businesses that are causing this problem ought to be paying for this, or at least a major portion of it. Why does the County have to pay the whole bill? Just my opinion. Comment publication date: 5/7/26, 10:26 AM Comment source: Storey County, Tesla partner to extend I-80 Patrick on-ramp Comment author: Alan Reeder Comment text: Great guy, laughed easily, had fun with his students, enjoyed our time together at FHS! Comment publication date: 4/23/26, 10:23 PM Comment source: Howard David Jackson