COLUMBUS, NE — The reorganizing of the Nebraska high school football schedule is underway.

Columbus Athletic Director Tim Kwapnioski announced Monday that the Discoverers will host Scottsbluff at Memorial Stadium at Pawnee Park to open the season.  The game will be on Friday, August 28 with a 6:00 PM CT kickoff.

Both schools lost their opening week opponents due to COVID-19. Columbus was supposed to host Omaha Central while Scottsbluff was expected to visit Fort Morgan, CO. Omaha Public Schools suspended fall sports for the first quarter. The Colorado High School Activities Association is aiming to play football in the spring.

Both schools still have another hole in their schedules. Scottsbluff needs to replace its slotted game at Sterling, CO on September 18. Columbus was scheduled to host Omaha Northwest on October 9.

This is an inter-class game, as Columbus is in A and Scottsbluff is in B. The Nebraska School Activities Association’s online records date back to 2003 and the Discoverers and Bearcats didn’t play any of those seasons. The schools are familiar with each other in different sports as former members of the Greater Nebraska Athletic Conference.

Right now, the replacement game would not count towards wild card points, which determine the teams that qualify for the state tournament. Some officials have suggested the NSAA change its stance on replacement games.