The Delaware County Christian School football team is in the middle of a significant change this year. After participating in an 8-man league for the last several seasons—including a berth in last year’s championship game—the Knights are now shifting to traditional 11-man football for the first time in nearly a decade.

So far, the Knights have had a rocky start to the current season. After losing their opener to Pequea Valley, 22-12, they fell to Archbishop Carroll, 54-8, and Red Lion Christian Academy, 53-0. Despite a few lopsided losses, the team hopes things are going in the right direction— a trend that began Friday night, September 19, with an exciting 36-32 comeback win over BAL rival Morrisville.

Senior captain Jesse Payson observes improvement every week: “It’s been a rough few weeks, but we’re improving. We’re settling into a new format and adjusting the best we can.”

This switch has also forced a good amount of younger players to step up into bigger roles, demanding more leadership from upperclassmen. “We’ve got a good amount of new guys on the field, and they’re learning quickly,” explains fellow senior captain Christian ODonnell. “We’re going to keep pushing.” 

While practices have been more demanding this year, the players are staying focused on conditioning, learning new positions, and adjusting to the bigger field and a different style of play. Although it has been an adjustment, the team is staying committed to pushing forward. 

For Head Coach Lloyd Hill, this season isn’t only about wins or losses. Instead, both the team and he see this season as an opportunity to grow and to build a program that will play competitively at the 11-man level in the future, marking an important transition year for the team. 

Even with a slow start, excitement still abounds as to what this transition will mean for Delaware County Christian School football. Certainly, the players are aware it isn’t supposed to be easy, so they’re definitely ready for the challenge ahead.