Cardinals pick up a week one win over Bay City

The Columbus Cardinals start the 2026 football season off after defeating Bay City on Friday, Aug. 28, in Bay City.

The Cards left Bay City with a 34-19 win thanks to a stellar performance on both sides of the ball.

The game was scoreless in the first quarter but in the second quarter both teams were able to get points on the board. The Cards scored twice while Bay City scored once to carry a 14-6 lead into halftime.

Both teams scored once more in the third quarter, and the Cards held onto a 20-13 lead going into the fourth. The Cards extended their lead by scoring two touchdowns, and they gave up one more score to Bay City to arrive at the final score of 34-19.

Defensively, the Cards had two takeaways in the form of interceptions from Jayden Spaulding and Kiyan Johnson. They also limited Bya City’s offense to only 19 points and helped lift the Cards to their first win of the season.

Offensively, the Cards’ new quarterback David James had a great game on the ground. He carried the ball 14 times for 186 yards and two touchdowns.

He was not the only Cardinal to have a great game on the ground as Doc Cantu also rushed for over 100 yards. He carried the ball 20 times for 145 yards and found the endzone twice as well. One of the newest Cardinals Mikael Shifatu also scored a rushing touchdown in is Cardinal debut to help the Cards start the season 1-0.

Through the air the Cards tested James’ arm, and he completed three of his seven passes for 40 yards. All three of those passes were caught by Jack Schobel, while Irving Giles went 2/3 on extra points and Enoch Loafman went 2/2 on extra points to cap off the week one victory.

The Cards will now return to their nest for their week two matchup against La Grange on Friday, Sept. 4, at 7 p.m.