Game of the Week: UMS Wright at St. Paul's

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - If you’re looking for a good old-fashioned high school football rivalry, look no further than UMS-Wright at Saint Paul’s, the Battle of Old Shell Road.  You won’t find region standings or playoff seeding on the line in this one, our final game of the week of the regular season, only bragging rights.

Going in, both coaches have adopted a similar philosophy; neither will rest anyone since they’re treating this heated match-up like a playoff game.

“Our playoffs actually start tonight with UMS, because this will catapult us to the first round on the road, so we want to treat this like a playoff atmosphere," said St. Paul's Head Coach Steve Mask.

“It’s a good game to get you ready for the playoffs," said UMS Head Coach Terry Curtis.  "You kind of find out where you are.  If you still have some weaknesses, I’m sure they’ll exploit them, and our biggest thing is we have to tackle better and hopefully we will.”

Like last week, we have a coach comparing a storied rivalry to the Iron Bowl.

“Everybody compares it to an Alabama-Auburn type situation, and a lot of ways it is because nobody really has a home base," Mask said.  "It’s a great rivalry and there’s a lot of respect between the two schools.  Terry is a good friend of mine, we’ve known each other for years, and I have a lot of respect for what he’s done with that program.”

As for Mask’s program, St. Paul’s entered this season with lofty expectations.  But following a loss to Vigor, the Saints are the third seeded 5A Region 1 team.

That doesn’t sit well with senior running back Jordan Huff.

“It definitely gives us a chip on our shoulder, because we have a lot to prove to show that we’re on top," Huff said.

But Bulldogs offensive lineman Gus Addison plans to win this rivalry game in his final season.

“It’s just really important," Addison said.  "It’s our biggest rivalry game, even bigger than the McGill game.  It’s just a lot of fun to try to beat your friends out there.”

Head to head, UMS-Wright leads this rivalry 17-6 all time, but a St. Paul’s win would not only even the series, the Saints would make it three in a row.