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STEUBENVILLE -- A Week 10 backyard rivalry, positioning for the Ohio Division VII, Region 25 playoffs and a coach going against his former team.
Those are just a few of the storylines that will play out Saturday when Catholic Central and Toronto meet for the 49th time Saturday. The Crusaders hold a 31-16-1 lead in the series but the Red Knights have won the last three encounters. The opening kick is set for 7 p.m. inside Harding Stadium.
"It's a game the kids look forward to year round," said Toronto coach Josh Franke. "It's just a fun game between two close, tight communities. It's always been a really good game. Not only do our kids look forward to it but I'm sure their kids do as well."
"This will be the 11th time I have been involved in this rivalry as a coach, but my first time in the blue and gold," said Central's Eric Meek, who guided the Red Knights from 2010-2017. "We will be ready to go.
"It's always been an intense and hard fought but a clean game. That is what I expect Saturday night. I expect you will see the best out of both teams."
Franke's Red Knights are 6-3 following last week's victory over Pymatuning Valley and have won two straight. They started the season 4-0 before dropping three straight. Toronto currently is ninth in the Region 25 standings. The Red Knights have clinched a playoff berth and can finish anywhere between fourth and 10th with a victory Saturday.
"We're kind of in a four-team race with New Middletown Springfield, Mathews and Lucas for the seventh and eighth seeds and the right to host a first round game," Franke said. "If we want any chance of hosting a game, we have to win Saturday.
"We are already in regardless of what happens but you want to host a playoff game -- that is a goal for every team. That definitely is motivation going into this one for us outside of the rivalry game."
The 3-6 Crusaders are 13th in Region 25. With a victory Saturday, Central would finish between 11th and 15th. There's still a chance they could qualify should they fall short against the Red Knights.
"The bizarre thing is we will know late Friday night whether we have to win to get it," Meek said. "Our goal, however, is to win the game and to get better.
"As I have said the whole month of October, our goal is to worry about ourselves and try to improve every single day and every single play. Hopefully, we will continue to play after this weekend."
Toronto and Central have gone against three common opponents this season in Edison, Wellsville and Madonna. Both fell to Edison while the Red Knights knocked off both Wellsville and Madonna. Those two clubs own victories over the Crusaders.
The Red Knight offense, which is averaging 29 points per game, is directed by sophomore Zeb Kinsey. He has thrown for 690 yards and five touchdowns while adding 852 yards on the ground and 14 scores. To date, senior Zane Kinsey has run for 670 yards and seven six-pointers. He also has seven pass receptions.
Junior Dom Bouscher is a weapon in both the running and passing games. He has 531 yards and four rushing touchdowns. He leads the team with 29 receptions, good for 309 yards and a score.
"They present a lot of things as far as trick plays, fake punts, onside kicks and multiple formations," Meek said when discussing the Red Knights. "They do a lot of different things so we will be preparing for all of that. They are an extremely talented football team, especially from a speed standpoint. From a skill standpoint, they have the most talent on our schedule, but we are excited--it is the Toronto and Catholic Central football game.
"This week we really are focusing on our seniors and ourselves. We have some special things planned for our five seniors (Andrew Dorsey, Meliki Manley, Nico Petrella, Willie Rao and Dashon Seditz). We're hoping we can extend our time with them and continue to play next week as well."
Central, according to Franke, is a team "that has improved as the year progressed."
"We always keep a close eye on them," he said. "We have been able to see them play several times and they have gotten better each week. That is a credit to coach Meek and his staff. He is an experienced coach and he does a good job. He really has brought them along over the course of the season.
"They are tough up front. Defensively, they will bring a lot of pressure. They will bring an additional guy you can't account for in an attempt to make your quarterback get rid of the ball quick. They fill up every gap and are physical and fast up front.
"Offensively, they have some athletes. Number 18 (Tommy Pergi) is one of the guys you have to keep your eye on in both the passing and running games. Regardless of who is at quarterback, you are going to get some quarterback running game. They do some things offensively that you definitely have to account for with your defense."
Junior Tyler Ialenti has been directing the Central offense in recent weeks but Dorsey also has taken some snaps. Junior BJ Fallon has emerged as a threat running and catching the football.
Franke reports his Red Knights are back to full health for the first time since early in the season.
"I don't think we have anyone injured this week which has not been the case the six weeks or so," he said. "We are 100 percent healthy going in and that is a good omen heading into the playoffs.
"We were really scrapping and fighting through the injury bug earlier this season. I think we had nine kids injured for the Barnesville game. But we are back to full health going into Week 10 and hopefully that carries into the playoffs."
Meek, who stepped away from the coaching ranks in early 2018, continues to teach in the Toronto school district.
"I love the kids in Toronto," he said. "I teach at Toronto from 7:15 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. every day, then I feel blessed to get in the car and drive to Steubenville and spend time with the kids at Catholic Central. I have a great rapport with my students and my colleagues. I am very honored and humbled to be the football coach at Catholic Central -- it's a great place to be and I am looking forward to Saturday night.
"The kids are awesome and that is why I am in this profession. It's always been for the kids."
Franke praised Meek for "always treating me with respect."
"Eric preceded me in this job and he has always treated me well," Franke said. "He always has been helpful, never tried to intervene or talk poorly about me. He has always treated me with respect and I don't think that will change or be any different come Saturday night."
Both Franke and Meek teach social studies for the Toronto district.