Photo Courtesy of Mid-Prairie Football Social Media/Dillon Poole

The lights will turn on Friday the for the first time this season at Dwight G. Sattler Field as the Mid-Prairie Golden Hawk football team welcomes the West Liberty Comets to Wellman for their annual preseason scrimmage.

Mid-Prairie finished last season with a 6-4 record, third place in Class 2A District 6, qualifying for the playoffs with a 3-2 mark. They beat Northeast Goose Lake 7-6 in the first round of the playoffs before being bounced by Williamsburg.

In 2022, West Liberty was 3-6 overall, 3-2 in Class 2A District 5. The Comets were eliminated in the first round of the 2A postseason by Dubuque Wahlert. The Hawks and Comets last met in an official game in 2017, a 34-3 West Liberty win at Memorial Field.

Both schools will have an opportunity to see their offensive, defensive and special teams units in action against live competition in a scrimmage format Friday, complete with officials, and pauses for coaching breakdowns. Starters will be on the field for 20 snaps and second-teamers for a dozen.

The football scrimmage is part of a larger night of events at Mid-Prairie that includes introduction and recognition of the Golden Hawk volleyball and cross country teams before kickoff, with concessions by the Golden Hawk Athletic Boosters. Admission is Gatorade for the Golden Hawk sports teams. The event starts at 7p.m. at Mid-Prairie High School.