To the young men who will don different shades of blue and square off Friday night at Hopewell High, their common bond of high school football rivalry passion will be underscored by a glaring trend.
Hopewell has beaten North Meck the last four times they've met. In such a heated rivalry, a streak of that length carries some weight. On that, there is no disagreement.
Where the rivals differ, of course, is on their hopes for the 11th meeting of Hopewell and North on the gridiron. Will Hopewell continue its control in the series it leads 6-4, or will a hungry Vikings' team gain some redemption on the final night of its rough season?
Regardless of the outcome, the rivalry's history indicates that it will at least be interesting.
"People can say it's not the rivalry it was several years ago," says North coach Mike Bradley, who coached Hopewell in its first four seasons and has been a part of every Hopewell-North game. "But I think it will be pretty spirited."
Both teams are inspired. Bradley says the game is his team's playoff game. At 1-9 overall and 0-6 in the I-Meck, the Vikings, who have lost seven straight since beating East Meck on a Tuesday in September, won't make the state's postseason.
Hopewell, however, still can. The Titans, 3-6 overall, are tied with West Charlotte for sixth in the I-Meck with 2-4 records, one game back of a three-way tie for third between Hough, Lake Norman and Vance. To stay in the playoff hunt, the Titans, on a three-game losing streak, need to close an up-and-down regular season with a victory.
"I don't even like roller coasters, but I feel like I've been on one since the second week of August," says Hopewell coach David Johnson.
Much of what happens on Friday figures to go through Hopewell's Denzel Heath and North's Terrence Clyburn, who have each scored 13 touchdowns.
Heath, a Shrine Bowl selection, is a standout at linebacker and running back. He has scored on five runs of 56 yards or more, including a long of 78 against East Lincoln Aug. 26 and makes more than eight tackles per game.
"Every time I see him, he does something more impressive," says Bradley. "He's special, very deserving of the Shrine Bowl pick."
Clyburn is utilized at multiple offensive positions. He scored 11 of the team's first 16 touchdowns this year and has scored three times on kick returns, including on a 95-yarder against Vance Oct. 14.
"If you lose track of him, you can put six on the board," says Johnson.
Bradley is the rivalry's most seasoned veteran, but has tasted victory only twice in the series, first in 2003 as Hopewell's coach, in the game that included a streaker, and in 2006 as a North assistant when Viking Daryl Vereen and Titan Chaz Green battled throughout.
Johnson, meanwhile, is getting his first dose of the rivalry — one that until this year featured a battle between two close friends as opposing head coaches in Bradley and former Hopewell coach Chris Rust.
"I'm catching bits and pieces from everybody, what they remember," says Johnson.
But ultimately, he's more concerned with his team just getting a win, regardless of who it's against.
