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ST. CLAIRSVILLE -- The coveted Coal Bucket Trophy will be up for grabs once again Friday night when Harrison Central visits Red Devil Stadium to meet St. Clairsville. This will be the 24th matchup between the two Buckeye 8 rivals, with the Red Devils holding a commanding, 18-5, advantage in a series that dates back to 1999.
Both teams come into the 7:30 kickoff highly ranked in their respective Buckeye State divisions. St. Clairsvillle (4-1) checks in at sixth in Division IV, Region 15 and is riding a 4-game winning streak after a season-opening loss to still-perfect Canton South. Meanwhile, the Huskies (4-1) are third in Division V, Region 17 after winning their first two, but then lost a 22-20 heartbreaker at Malvern before routing Union Local and East Liverpool.
According to sources close to the program, the Red Devils win two weeks ago over Wheeling Central gave them 600 in program history, which dates back to 1919. The Red Devils were 14-10-3 against Cadiz High School before the consolidation.
"We've got a veteran group of kids that have started for three years, some of them four," Harrison Central head coach Anthony Hayes said. "That's a credit to my coaching staff for getting the kids varsity reps."
Meanwhile, veteran St. Clairsville head coach Brett McLean is leery of the Huskies.
"I'm not shocked to see the success and the outputs they have had. Their roster is filled with veterans. I do extensive off-season reports and we look at the sheets and they have more people back that are lettermen and starters than any team on our schedule," McLean assessed. "I'm really impressed with them offensively and defensively."
Both teams have put together explosive offensive performances and lights-out defensive outings. St. Clairsville is scoring at a 45.2 clip while giving up just 18.6. On the other hand, Harrison Central averages 33.6 and gives up 16.
"In order for us to win we need to do a couple of things," Hayes added. "First of all, we must be able to block and tackle well. Secondly, we must stop the run on defense, or at least contain it; and, thirdly, we have to continue to get multiple players involved. We need to spread the wealth."
Senior Hayden Cassidy triggers the Huskies offense. His top targets are classmates Parker Hutton, Alex Fluharty, Clayton Vermillion and junior Cam McAfee. Junior running back Mykel Quito is the top threat.
"They' ve got a three-year starter at quarterback who is a multi-sport kid," McLean said of Cassidy. "They've got a two-headed monster at running back in (Mykel) Quito and the (Cam) McAfee kids. One is a power back and the other a shifty speed kid. They've also got a good receiving corps that has a lot of length. They can go up and get the ball when they need too."
St. Clairsville also has strong skilled players in junior tailback Dino Burk, senior receivers Colt Westlake and Cole Thoburn, and junior quarterback Brady Schafer.
"We are at the midway point of the season and we have done a lot of evaluating. We can't continue to repeat our mistakes. We've committed too many penalties. That's one thing that has to be addressed if we want to grow into the team we want to be. We've got a long way to go."
However, this game most likely will be won in the trenches as both squads present formidable lines on both sides of the ball.
"This is a typical St. Clairsville team," Hayes noted. "They have around 80 kids and they are big, strong and physical. They are always well-coached and we know we are the underdog. We always are. Nobody ever gives us a chance except the people in our program and some of our fans."