California's Trona High fights to keep football alive in wake of earthquakes

TRONA, Calif. - Only nine kids show up for football practice on a brutal afternoon in August, the sun lingering stubbornly over this desert town, keeping the temperature in triple digits.

Tugging on shoulder pads and helmets in a cramped locker room, the players hold their chatter to a minimum, cleats ticking across the concrete floor as they head outside to a field that is barren because not a blade of grass grows at the edge of Death Valley. And it seems like the wind blows constantly here, pushing waves of dust across the landscape.

The coach, dressed in jeans and work boots, his arms heavily tattooed, calls for a few laps before stretching.

"How we feeling?" Richard Ancira barks. "Ready to work?"

Football has never been easy at Trona High.

At least in the old days the school fielded big squads, all those miners' sons eager to prove themselves on Friday night. They forged a reputation for toughness, scratching out wins, even contending for