Tracy High’s varsity Bulldogs on a hot streak after starting off the season with a record of 0-3. However, in their six games since, they put up a 4-2 record to put their overall standing at 4-5

When asked about the biggest challenge the Bulldogs faced in the first part of the year, Head Coach Matt Shrout stated, “we just had to grow up, we were pretty young so we just got more play experience.” Senior Left Tackle Cameron Haynes replied, “probably playing as one unit, [and] making sure everyone does their job.” Senior Robert (RJ) Moore had a similar answer, only with more confidence; “definitely everyone playing as a team and doing [their] jobs all the time.”

Up to this point, Tracy varsity football has posted a 4-5 record, going 3-1 in league. They have only one game left following a 21-57 blowout from St. Mary’s and a 49-21 victory versus the Lincoln Trojans in their homecoming game. The Bulldogs play their last game of the year at West High, where they hope to close out the season with a victory.

The bye week must have been a great time for the Bulldogs, as they came up with a 49-0 shutout win in Lodi against the Flames. Tracy piled up 377 total offensive yards while only allowing 51 to their counterpart. Josh Alvarado went 5-5 in passing for 74 yards, along with 11 carries for 118 yards and four touchdowns. Sarsfield had nine carries for 94 yards and two touchdowns, adding one reception for 26 yards.

Against the Tokay Tigers, Tracy dominated on offense and won by a grand total of 58-21. The Bulldogs gained 337 offensive yards compared to Tokay’s 148. The running game gained 236 yards.

In week five, Tracy suffered a 14-41 loss versus the Liberty Lions, with all 41 Liberty points coming in the second and third quarters. The Lions gained 369 total offensive yards compared to Tracy’s 268. Heading into their bye week, the Bulldogs finished the first half of the season with a record of 1-4.

The fourth week finally brought some promising energy to Tracy, following a 36-7 win at home against their cross-town rival, the Kimball Jaguars. The Bulldogs blew out Kimball on offense, totaling 411 yards in comparison to only 173 from Kimball. Sophomore running back Mason Sarsfield led an explosive ground attack for Tracy, piling 124 yards on 16 carries, with one touchdown as well as a 60 yard receiving touchdown and a whopping 7.8 yards per carry.

The Bulldogs went to Turlock in week three to face the Turlock Bulldogs, where they were handed a 7-24 loss. Week two wasn’t much better; in fact it was far worse. Playing their home opener against the Freedom Falcons, the Bulldogs were blown out by a score of 42-14, 28 of those points coming in the second quarter for Freedom. The Falcons piled up a healthy 410 total offensive yards (along with five passing touchdowns), while Tracy could only total 264.

The opening week of the season didn’t turn out well for Tracy, as they lost 28-35 to San Ramon Valley. After allowing 21 points in the first quarter as well as allowing 243 passing yards, they failed to catch up from that slow defensive start. San Ramon Valley contributed 312 yards of offense compared to Tracy, who totaled just 282.