Friday night’s much-anticipated high school football game at Adrian between the Dragons and rival Murray County Central should be a great game, as it usually is.
This year’s early-season matchup on September 6 features a pair of teams who were both impressive in earning opening-game victories last Thursday evening, August 29. Utilizing a punishing rushing attack, the Dragons crushed Russell-Tyler-Ruthton at Tyler, 42-13, without throwing a pass. The Rebels won big over Yellow Medicine East at Slayton, 36-14. Both winning squads had great success running the football.
Last year, the Rebels won two games over the Dragons (20-10 at Adrian on October 5 and 28-0 in a first-round Section 3A playoff game at Slayton on October 23). MCC finished 8-3 last fall, while Adrian was 1-8.
Two seasons ago (2017), the Dragons finished 2-8, but both victories (26-21 at Slayton on October 6 and a 14-6 playoff triumph, also at Slayton, on October 24) came against MCC, which completed its season with a 4-5 record.
The Rebels and Dragons had a pair of fierce battles in the fall of 2016, including MCC’s dramatic Section 3A championship victory (27-26 in overtime) at Marshall on November 4, advancing the Rebels to the state tournament. A state quarterfinal loss to mighty Rushford-Peterson (44-21) at New Prague on November 11) ended MCC’s excellent season with an 8-4 mark.
Earlier in 2016, the Dragons — who finished with a fine 7-4 record — had earned an 18-8 win over MCC at Slayton on September 23, the fourth game of the campaign.
So, in the last six meetings between the two strong rivals, the Rebels have won three games (two in 2018 and a split in 2016) and the Dragons have won three times (both games in 2017 along with a split in ’16). Friday’s game will be like Game 7 of the World Series!
Going back to 2015, Adrian and MCC played just once — a 36-6 victory by the Dragons at Adrian in Game 4 on September 11 (the season’s first game that year was on August 22). Adrian won seven of 11 games that year, while the Rebels were 2-7.
The Dragons had also won in, shutout fashion, in both 2014 (28-0 at Adrian on October 3) and in 2013 (34-0 at Slayton on October 4), after a 28-8 victory over the Rebels in 2012 (at Slayton on September 21).
That was five straight regular-season wins for the Dragons — from 2012-2016 — before MCC snapped the streak with its overtime triumph in the sectional finals at Southwest Minnesota State University’s Mattke Field on sophomore Mason Woldt’s game-winning field goal kick.
During the span from 2012-2018, Adrian compiled win-loss records of 8-3, 7-3, 8-3, 7-4, 7-4, 2-8 and 1-8 for a seven-year mark of 40-33 (.548), while finishing as the Section 3A runner-up four times (2012, 2014. 2015 and 2016).
Prior to that, the Dragons had a remarkable eight-year run from 2004-2011, going 9-1, 7-4, 9-1, 11-3, 6-5, 11-3, 9-3 and 10-2 for a combined record of 72-22 (.766) during those years, which included sectional championships in 2007 and 2009, 2010 and 2011. Adrian was the Class A Prep Bowl state runner-up in 2007 and 2011 after having done the same back-to-back in both 1997 and 1998.
MCC’s three-year record since 2016 (8-4, 4-5 and 8-3) is a sparkling 20-12 (.625) and the Rebels have been known to pull upsets on the Dragons in the playoffs.
In 2006, MCC — after losing to the Dragons (28-0) at Adrian on September 29 — defeated Adrian in the sectional semifinals (22-14) at Adrian on October 28.
There have been lots of great high school football games between MCC and Adrian — expect another one Friday.
The Twins are still in first place — by six games — after winning three-of-four in Detroit and sweeping the White Sox. Having won seven of their last eight, Minnesota moves forward with a stellar 85-52 record (33 games above .500) and has established three Major League single-season home run records, which include: most by catchers (39 — between Garver, Castro and Astudillo) most players with 20 or more (eight — Kepler, Cruz, Rosario, Sano, Garver, Cron, Schoop and Polanco) and most total home runs (269 as of Monday, breaking the Yankees mark of 267 set last year).
With just 25 games to go, anything can happen — but the Twins will be closing in on a Central Division championship if they can win three or four times in their upcoming six games (three at Boston and three at home against the still-challenging Cleveland Indians.
