Crestview prepping for rival Wayne Trace

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

It’s one of the bigger non-conference rivalries around but one team has had the upper hand in recent years.

Not counting the COVID-19 season of 2020, when the two teams didn’t play, Crestview has won eight straight in the ongoing series against Wayne Trace, including a 14-6 victory last year. Wayne Trace’s last win came in 2013, 54-41.

The two teams will meet this Friday night in Haviland and the game will serve as the final non-conference tune-up of the season. Both teams enter the game 1-1, with both teams winning their respective opener, then falling last week. The Knights lost to McComb 55-13, while the Raiders lost to Patrick Henry 34-12, leading both head coaches to share a common theme.

“There is always something you can learn for a game like this,” Crestview head coach Cole Harting said of his team’s loss to McComb. “We did a lot of really good things. It’s clear that if we can clean things up on our end, we can compete with teams like that.”

Through both games, we’ve played with great effort on both sides of the ball,” Wayne Trace head coach Matt Holden said. “I thought that our improvement in run defense was huge from Week No. 1 to Week No. 2. Offensively, we’ve shown that we can move the ball when we execute, we just need to clean a few things up to be more consistent.”

“Offensively, we have to be better up front,” Holden continued. “We were not setting the protection correctly last week which really limited our ability to throw the ball against Patrick Henry. You can’t make those mistakes against good teams and hope to win. We also have been sloppy with the football throughout two games so that absolutely needs to be fixed. Offensively and on special teams we’re just not taking care of the football. Defensively, we have yet to put together a complete performance. We’ve identified the mistakes that we’ve been making and they will be fixed before Friday night.”

Through two games, Wayne Trace quarterback Kyle Stoller is 26-of-43 for 322 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, pus 17 carries for 86 yards. Tucker Antoine leads the team in catches with eight for 49 yards, while Jude Stoller is the team leading in receiving yards, with 95. Antoine also has 24 carries for 83 yards and three touchdowns.

“Offensively, they have a lot of experience on their line,” Harting said. “Their quarterback does a very good job of extending plays and making throws down the field.”

By comparison, Crestview quarterback Bryson Penix has completed 21-of-30 passes for 230 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions. However, he was injured on the first play of the McComb game and did not return. His status for Friday is unknown. In his place, Jaret Harting stepped in at quarterback and was 8-of-12 passing for 40 yards and had 13 carries for 128 yards.

“Jaret is a very unique player, he can do a little bit of everything,” Harting said. “He brings a lot to the table, he’s very athletic, he has great size and he also has breakaway speed. He has shown he has the ability to score from anywhere on the field.”

Jaret Harting is an X factor when he has the ball in his hands,” Holden said. “He made several big plays against a very talented McComb defense after coming in at quarterback. Whether it’s at quarterback, running back or on special teams, we have to be very aware of where he’s at so we can limit any big plays by him.”

Friday’s Crestview at Wayne Trace game will air live on 99.7 WKSD.