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Football, volleyball seasons at Vermilion get underway soon
Student-athletes at Vermilion Community College are returning to town.
While classes don’t begin until Aug. 26, both the football and volleyball teams begin workouts within days, in preparation for the start of their 2024 campaigns.
It’s a new era of sorts on the gridiron at Vermilion, where former Ironhawk player and assistant coach Tyree Johnson has taken the reins as head coach.
Johnson, the program’s third head coach in as many seasons, is hoping to bring stability to a program that has been in flux for much of the last decade.
Vermilion was undersized and outmanned during the 2023 season, when it picked up just one victory and sometimes suited up as few as 20 players.
Johnson said earlier in the summer that he hoped to have as many as 55 players out for the team this fall.
The football season-opener is slated for Saturday, Aug. 31, with a home game against Rochester.
Mesabi is here Sept. 7, while the third and final home clash is set for Sept. 28, when Vermilion takes on North Dakota School of Science as part of Parents’ Weekend at the school.
At the end of the week, Vermilion’s volleyball team will gather as Aaron Bender begins his third season in charge of the program.
Vermilion went 1-17 a year ago and Bender is retooling the program this fall while relying on some local talent.
Aubree Gerlovich, a former Ely Timberwolf and part of two recent Ely teams that qualified for the state tournament, will be part of a 10-player Vermilion roster.
The Ironhawks have a scrimmage Aug. 19 and open the regular season with an Aug. 28 home date against Rainy River.
