By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
The St. Joe Bucks are starting preparations for their upcoming 2024 season. The Bucks are holding player tryouts this Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Hitmen Indoor Sports Complex in St. Joseph.
The Bucks, members of the Midwest Regional Football League, are gearing up for their third season of competition this spring. They fell short in the championship game in 2022, but ran the table in 2023.
"We have a lot of area athletes here and our purpose is to give back to the St. Joseph community as much as we can," said Bucks head coach David Hershberger - a King City native and Missouri Western alum. He founded the Bucks in 2020 with his wife, Makayla.
"Not only do we have fun playing football and fueling our needs there, but the guys do a good job of giving back in the community and finding events they can help out with. Cleaning up the streets and stuff like that."
Player tryouts are open for anyone, ages 18 and up. There's a $35 fee to try out, but any player who makes the team gets the money back. The Bucks are also holding cheerleader and mascot tryouts Saturday as well.
Hershberger encourages any player who wants to try out Saturday to get to the Hitmen Indoor Sports Complex by noon to get registered.
The Bucks will play about 9-10 regular season games, using the St. Joseph School District's high school fields for home contests. Their first game is Saturday, March 30 at Warrensburg.
The Midwest Regional Football League features eight teams in all, including teams in Maryville (Bearcats) and three in the Kansas City metro.
The St. Joe Bucks aren't the only semi-pro team in the city. The St. Joseph Swarm played their second season in the spring and summer of 2023, and they're members of the Heartland Football Association.
The St. Joe Bucks have a Facebook page and a website, bucksfootball.org, for anyone who wants to learn more.
You can follow Tommy on Twitter @TommyKFEQ and St. Joseph Post @StJosephPost.