What makes a rivalry so great? Is it the bragging rights and school pride? Maybe it’s all the history and agony from a past loss that fuels the flame to the fire? Whatever it is, we can all agree that having a rival in sports makes it better for both teams. Pushing your talents to another level based on the competition you play can also play a factor in how your team is built. Ultimately the main goal is to win championships, but if the opportunity arises to beat your local cross town foe you pounce on it!
Mansfield Senior and Lexington have a long history of heated games. Just ten minutes separate these two schools which makes winning even sweeter for the victors and agony much more painful for the defeated. Rivalries can be games won back and forth between the two every other year but they also could hold stretches of dominance from one school and that can cause the hatred to grow deeper. In this case, 2018 was the last time Lexington defeated Mansfield Senior. Before Cade Stover made it to the League, he ran all over the Tyger defense in a 44-16 rout in the ‘18 contest. One has to wonder if that game triggered an aggressive response from Mansfield to avoid that painful feeling of losing to your rival. Now the shoe is on the other foot with Lexington.
The Minutemen come into Friday’s game at Arlin Field with a seven game losing streak to the Tygers. After on 0-3 start to the season Lexington has rebounded quite nicely under fantastic quarterback play from D1 prospect Joe Caudill. The Junior has lead his team to back to back wins over Akron North and most recently Wooster. Against the Generals Caudill put together a monster performance accounting for over 300 total yards and six touchdowns, three on the ground and three through the air. Last year was the first year as the starter for Caudill, and even while learning through the first year adversity that comes with being a young starting quarterback he still managed to lead the Minutemen to a 5-5 record and a playoff berth. Now in his second year as the leader of the team, he's not only leading the Minutemen through the air but he also leads them in rushing as well. If that wasn't enough he plays a big role as a starting linebacker. Safe to say after the last two weeks he’s playing his best as conference play begins.
Minutemen head coach Andrew Saris in his third season has done a great job thus far rebuilding the Lexington football program. Knowing he has a lot of talent on the team, Coach Saris and his staff have rallied his troops to come together to play as a team. Junior's Brayden Fogle and Seven Allen have proven to be valuable assets on both sides of the ball. The speed and athleticism of Allen on the field is truly a sight to see. Allen scored the first three Minutmen touchdowns of the season, two receiving and a pick six. He's a kid you have to keep an eye on at all times. Fogle on the other hand brings an entirely different aspect to the game; pure athleticism and size. He can catch anything in the same zip code and also track down the QB in the blink of an eye. You won’t see another kid spend more time on improving his skills and game than Fogle. Add to that the emerging senior leadership from guys like Camden Boozer and Gage Powell, among others, and you can see why Lexington has turned some heads the past few weeks after a slow start to the season.
On the other sideline Friday will be the defending OCC champions from Mansfield Senior. In his 15th season as head coach, Chioke Bradley has a ton of experience against Lexington not only as a coach but also as a player. Coach Bradley and the Tygers also got off to a tough start at 0-4 after a gauntlet of a non conference schedule. Senior Maurice Bradley Jr. the team’s leading tackler and D1 prospect returned from injury last week. MJ’s energy on the field definitely motivates his teammates around him. Through the first five games Junior Guy Trader has really made an explosive impact. Trader has 2 kick return touchdowns and he had over 100 yards receiving against West Holmes in week four. While the offense took a few weeks to find their groove it was Guy Trader who stepped up proving to everyone he can contribute at a high level and adding more depth to this team. Former Tyger star Duke Reese graduated last year leaving the quarterback position up for grabs as the Tygers started this season. Last week we officially found out it was Junior Jordan Ferguson’s job. The Tygers earned their first lead and win of the season on the road last week against the Quakers of New Philly. Trailing 19-13 in overtime, Ferguson, on the first play of the Mansfield possession, would pitch the ball over to Senior Ny Petty who then executed a wide receiver pass to a wide open Guy Trader in the back of the end zone to tie the game. After all the celebrations were finished, the Tygers still had to handle business by kicking the extra point. Senior place kicker Griffin DeBolt would nail the PAT giving the Tygers a wild 20-19 win on the road. Coming in at 1-4 Mansfield Senior will look to continue to find their rhythm Friday night.
These two teams have one thing in common. They are both still searching for their identity. Chemistry is everything when it comes to winning. It seems that both of these teams are starting to mesh at the right time which could set up for a great game Friday night under the lights. Last year Mansfield faced Lexington twice as the second matchup came in the playoffs. The Tygers won both of those two games 37-10 and 30-13.
It’s been a roller coaster of a season for both schools so who knows what to expect Friday night at Arlin Field! The game starts at 7pm, you can listen to the game on both fearthevillage.com and gotygers.com.