Brevard, Hendersonville, Polk County football teams looking for game after Patton won't field team

Brevard , Hendersonville, Polk County and other Mountain Foothills 7 football teams are in search of a 10th game after Patton announced on Tuesday it will not field a varsity team in 2024 due to low numbers.

The Wolverines and the Blue Devils were scheduled to host the Panthers on Sept. 20 and Oct. 18. The Bearcats were supposed to travel to Patton on Nov. 1.

Brevard coach Luke Coleman, Polk County coach Dustin Fry and Hendersonville coach Kirron Ward said their programs will try to find a team for a 10th game. The Blue Devils would like to play an opponent on Oct. 18. The Wolverines are looking for a team on Sept. 20 or Oct. 11. The Bearcats need an opponent for Nov. 1.

Coleman knows finding a game with two weeks until the season starts and needing an opponent for a nonconference game in Week 8 will be a challenge.

"All you can do is tweet stuff out," Coleman said. "It's really hard to find a game, game eight of the season because everybody's in conference play."

Fry and Hendersonville coach Kirron Ward said they are open-minded when trying to find another opponent.

Fry wants to ensure that Polk County doesn't lose a home game but also wants an opponent that is a fair match for both teams.

Ward wants a full schedule for the sake of the players.

"I wouldn't want to cheat the fellas," Ward said. "I definitely want them to play their 10 games. They practiced hard and worked hard all summer up until this point."

Brevard and Polk County are at a bigger disadvantage than Hendersonville because they will lose a home game if they can't find a replacement for Patton.

"The disadvantage is we lose a home game and senior night," Coleman said. "That's the biggest disadvantage, the monetary that it costs the school. You lose a home game and you lose concessions."

Fry said he can relate to what Patton is going through.

Polk County won't have a junior varsity team for a second straight season. Patton, however, still plans to have a junior varsity team this season.

As an NCHSAA 1A school, Polk County has an enrollment of 579 students. Patton, a classification higher than the Wolverines, has an enrollment of 752 students.

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"It's kind of the times we're in right now," Fry said. "When you got all of these kids going out for other sports. Football, it's tough to get kids to buy in and stick with it because it's a tough sport for tough people."

Zachary Huber is a high school sports reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times and Hendersonville Times-News. Email him at zhuber@gannett.com or follow him on X @zacharyahuber. Please support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times and Times-News .

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Brevard, Hendersonville, Polk County football teams looking for game after Patton won't field team