By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
The Palisades High football team is practicing hard in preparation for what figures to be one of its toughest schedules in years.
The Dolphins will be tested even before the season officially begins when they host a scrimmage August 12 against reigning City Section Open Division champion Birmingham, which outscored its four City opponents 193-19 in the spring.
Palisades’ first three games are at home at Stadium by the Sea, starting with a Zero Week game Aug. 20 against Cleveland, which dealt the Dolphins their only regular season defeat, 28-25, in 2019.
The following Friday, Aug. 27, the Dolphins host Valley Mission League champion San Fernando, which earned the No. 2 seed in the Open Division playoffs in 2019 and won the City Division I title in 2017.
Week 2 is a Thursday night battle against Granada Hills in the annual Charter Bowl and the Highlanders will be determined to snap Palisades’ eight-game win streak dating back to 2012.
In Week 3 the Dolphins will travel for the first time to take on Reseda—a team that, like Palisades, went 3-1 in the spring and reached the CIF State Division 5A bowl game in 2019, going 11-4 and capturing the City Division I championship along the way.
After a bye week, Palisades heads up the road to take on Brentwood in the third “Sunset Showdown,” the schools having split the first two meetings—each winning on its home field.
Western League play begins October 1 at Venice, where the Dolphins were blanked by the Gondos 36-0 in April. Homecoming is Oct. 8 versus University and the next week is a Friday afternoon game at Hamilton.
Palisades will host Fairfax on Senior Night on Oct. 22 before closing out the regular season at Westchester, where the Dolphins pulled out a 16-12 win against the Comets on April 30.
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