Saturday, October 06, 2007

Game of the year

That's how I'm referring to Morro Bay's 27-23 win over Templeton on Friday night.

It's the best game I've seen this season.

I remember posting a blog last year asking which rivalry was the best on the Central Coast. And the SLO-A.G. people weighed in. Atascadero-Paso Robles has gotten a lot of juice lately.

But what I saw this week at Templeton was moving.

Not only was the game an exciting, dramatic, back-and-forth fight to the finish, but the atmosphere was unbelievable as well.

The music was blaring. The stadium was packed. There was nowhere to park. And this was AN HOUR BEFORE kickoff.

Normally, anyone can saunter up to a venue with half an hour to 15 minutes to spare and comfortably file in and find a seat.

Not for this game. It was standing room only before 7 p.m. And it didn't stop there.

Templeton handed out rally towels to most fans in the home stands. There was "The Templeton Bounce" and the Eagles dance team krumping at halftime.

And when it mattered most in the fourth quarter, Pirates fans boomed a chant of "Mor-O-Bay! Mor-O-Bay! Mor-O-Bay!" across the stadium. It took maybe two seconds for the Eagles fans to counter with "Tem-Pul-Ton! Tem-Pul-Ton! Tem-Pul-Ton!"

"I can sum it up in one word right now," Morro Bay coach John Andree said. "Rivalry. And I think no matter what the records are going to be down the road, it's gonna be like this every year."

And thanks to an idea by Templeton coach Don Crow, the teams will be playing for that trophy up at the top of the blog entry. It made its debut at Friday's game with last year's score already etched on.

And though some might be quick to dismiss the gimmick, it will a great way to add fuel to a rivalry that's already among the best around in only its second season.

Last but not least, here's a video of the trophy delivery. (Some TV guy got in my way at one point, but I got the last laugh — my video has cool music at the end. Neener.)

Clash on the Coast

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7 comments:

Anonymous said...

This does look like a start to a good rivalry, but this is just a start. There is no real history to this rivalry..like there is in the Atascadero/Paso rivalry or AG/SLO. Also, the two bigger rivalries spread across all sports and even in city pride. This looks like it will be a good small school rivalry though.

Anonymous said...

Morro Bay and Templeton have been getting a lot of press for two teams who have yet to play any tough teams this year, except each other.

Let's see how Morro Bay does this week on the road against a talented and hungry (0-2, LPL) Pioneer Valley team which beat A.G. 35-0 earlier in the year and held them to 35 yards TOTAL offense.

I'll be the first person to return to this blog on Saturday morning and give Morro Bay their due if they can beat a solid PV team.

Don't hold your breath.

Anonymous said...

Morro Bay is ranked No. 1 in the division in the CIF-SS poll. Scrog-dog here isn't the only voter in that poll, if he votes at all. Most of the voters are in the LA area.

For as good as AG feels after being a pair of terrible teams, beating the Eagles 35-0 isn't quite the feat it used to be. If I were Pioneer Valley, I wouldn't be hanging my hat on that, especially after the clinic the Panthers put on against Nipomo last week.

Anonymous said...

I'm a Greyhound, but I for one am going for Morro Bay! So GO Morro Bay!!!! lol

Anonymous said...

I agree, Anonymous, that beating AG this year 35-0 is not quite the statement it would have been in year's past.

I think AG will get throttled at Atascadero this week. BUT...35 yards of total offense is a statement and can't be overlooked.

As far as Pioneer v. Nipomo goes, Nipomo also beat Lompoc, so they seem to be a program on the rise. We'll see how Templeton does against them this week.

Should be an interesting Friday night.

Anonymous said...

Cool looking trophy. Where do you think the winning team display it at their school each year? In the front office? The weight room?

Anonymous said...

It's going to be the hood ornament on Coaches car this year.