Hardcore North Dakota football fans are going stir crazy over a highly-anticipated match up in Class AA football this week.
Defending state champion Dickinson Trinity (1-0) travels to Watford City (1-0) today for a game against the Wolves starting at 7 p.m.
Both teams are serious contenders to win the West Region title, making this game a possible state championship preview.
"It's a pretty big matchup for this early in the season," Dickinson Trinity head coach Randy Gordon said. "Watford City has a lot of returners. They've been picked pretty high."
"It's going to be a battle," long time Watford City coach Fred Fridley said. "Trinity has a tradition of being a very good football team. We have a big challenge ahead of us. We hope we can match up with them and make it a good ball game."
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Both teams are coming off crushing victories.
Trinity's suffocating defense didn't allow Valley City any breathing room en route to a 47-0 blow out. The Hi-Liners were held to 40 yards of total offense. Senior Brian Marsh ran for 180 yards and three touchdowns on 10 carries. Teammate Dan Carr ran for 102 yards and a TD on 14 carries.
"It's nice to have the two of them," Gordon said. "They do complement each other well. Teams got to watch both of them."
Watford City will look to its explosive offense to lead the charge. Sophomore quarterback Kevin Sanford has stepped in for the injured Justin Shipman and turned a few heads in the process. The Wolves topped Killdeer 35-6 last week thanks to three scoring strikes from Sanford. He finished the game 11-of-20 for 257 yards.
"He was a big question mark for us and he played well," Fridley said. "We think we can throw the ball as well as we can run the ball."
The balance between the two helped Watford City score on its first three possessions last week. Fridley said he knows he will need a good combination of both if he hopes to walk away with a victory.
"We can't be one-dimensional," Fridley said. "We have to mix it up."
