The big game
Just a little over 24 hours now, as I write this, before the annual East vs. North football showdown.
I’m now in my third year of covering East football, and — no surprise — the East-North matchup has been the most compelling. Probably because it’s the most competitive game on the Olympians’ schedule.
East has dominated the Hoosier Hills Conference. From 2004 through 2007, East’s regular-season conference record is 27-1. That sole loss was a 33-30 heartbreaker at Bedford North Lawrence which saw the Stars control with big running plays and an opportunistic defense.
East also lost to conference rival Seymour in the 2005 sectional opener. But look at their 27 conference wins in that span and you see the O’s outscoring their opponents 1,264 to 292. That’s an average margin of victory of 36 points per game.
Meanwhile, against North? Last year’s 20-10 North win featured the largest margin of victory since 2003, when the Bull Dogs won 35-7.
Certainly the conference season is important for the O’s. There’s certainly some confidence that can come from easily beating these other teams, especially when you consider five of East’s seven HHC foes are in Class 5A.
But ultimately, I think it’s tonight’s game that has pushed East and North alike into the state’s upper echelon of football programs.
There’s no doubt anymore that Columbus is a football town. Which makes tonight’s game truly “the” game on both team’s schedules.
At least until one or both make it to Lucas Oil Stadium at the end of November.
