Alas, high school football is here with a full slate of games to kick off the 2022 season.
The Jacobs Media airwaves will be filled with action, including three games, our Friday Game Night Tailgate Show and Hardy Chevrolet Scoreboard Show on Week 1 and throughout the 2022 campaign.
Since the cross-county rivalry's renewal, played every season between 2002 and 2015, West Hall and East Hall have traded punches, with each winning once since 2020. The Vikings lead the overall series by just one game, 12-11. Last season, the Spartans took an early lead, 14-0, but allowed East Hall to rally back and tie the game, 14-14, in the first half. West Hall outscored the Vikings, 34-7, en route to a blowout win, 48-21. With the history and county rival aspect lumped together, this one will either be a close one or a blowout. You can listen to the game on WDUN AM 550 (Click to listen live).
It's always a battle when North Hall and White County meet. White County controlled the series for the first 19 meetings, winning 16, while North Hall dominated the series from 1988 to 2009, winning 16 straight. Since then, the series is split, 6-6, with North Hall winning the last two. In 2021, the two bitter rivals went toe-to-toe for a half until the Trojans' offense exploded for 38 second-half points en route to a 51-20 win at the Brickyard. This series, since 2010, has always leaned toward the visiting team until North Hall broke that pattern last season. Both programs enter the season with new head coaches -- Chad Bennett at White County and Sean Pender at North Hall, making this year's battle even more interesting. You can hear that game on FM 102.9 WDUN (Click to listen live).
Gainesville officially begins the Josh Niblett era Friday night on the road against a well-oiled machine in Marist. Marist leads the all-time series 10-5, dating back to 1921. Marist won the inaugural matchup, 6-4. Since then, the two teams have only played 14 times, with Marist winning the last meeting in 2017, 39-14. Big Red will have a tall task against a solid Marist program, led by head coach Alan Chadwick -- the No. 2 most winning coach in the state. This game will give Niblett and the staff a solid gauge on team improvement, and if they do come out of Marist with a win, set the program on fire. The game can be heard live on FM 94.5 The Lake (Click to listen live).
Be sure to check back with AccessWDUN's Friday Game Night for score updates, game stories, and video highlights. You can also check for scores and highlights on our Twitter feed: @FridayGameNight
