It looks like this Friday’s Trinity vs. Huntington game will be one of the Miss-Lou’s better match ups of the season. Both have handled their early opponents with little trouble. Though Huntington is a MPSA “A” school while Trinity moved up to “AA” this year, you can throw that information out the window.

In mentioning Trinity, while I was on the sideline during last Thursday’s “Backyard Brawl” game between Millsaps and Mississippi College, I found that both of those teams have a Trinity kid listed on their roster. Millsaps has Cap White, a junior linebacker who stands 5’ 10” tall and weighs in at 210 pounds. On the Mississippi College Choctaw squad is sophomore wide receiver Zach Rogel, 5’ 11” and 170 pounds. Millsaps starting cornerback Jonathan Brooks is from Roxie and played at Co-Lin, but the program did not show his high school. Probably it was Franklin County.

I have read in several articles that the old Orange Bowl Stadium in Miami is about out of business. After having used the Orange Bowl Stadium as their home base since 1937, the University of Miami Hurricanes have signed a multi-year lease to begin playing at Dolphin Stadium beginning in 2008. I officiated a couple of Miami regular season games in the old stadium during my SEC career, and remember it as being much like the old Tulane Stadium, except the field was very hard and dry. But, that was many years ago.

The aforementioned Backyard Brawl was an unusual but exciting game. Though Mississippi College went into the contest a favorite, Millsaps jumped out to a 20 – 0 lead and appeared ready to romp. Millsaps had a first down deep in MC territory late in the second quarter, but Millsaps Coach Mike Dubose pulled his starters, and they did not play again until a drive in the third quarter. Folks on the sideline said he did that because the game was not a conference game. In Division III, playoff spots come only from conference standing. Makes sense.

High school football fans are aware that Alabama has recently dominated the annual Mississippi v Alabama All-Star game, played each summer in Mobile. I now have an idea why that is so. Last Friday night Wetumpka (Alabama) High School came to Madison to face Madison Central. Madison Central is one of the largest high schools in Mississippi and has annually been among the elite football programs in the state. Wetumpka handed Madison Central their heads, winning 35 – 14. It could have been much worse. The game reinforced my theory that you cannot cover 6’ 2” fast receivers who can catch with 5’ 6” corner backs and safeties.

By the way, while waiting to get in the gate at the college game, I heard my name called. It was Joe Stephenson, a former SEC football official I hadn’t seen in 25 years. Joe, who then lived in Memphis, left the SEC when he took a job in Virginia. He is back in Memphis, and has a grandson who will be playing basketball st Mississippi College. Joe and I officiated many freshman and varsity games together. It was good to see Joe again after so many years, and to remind each other of the many funny and fun things that do happen in the serious game of college football.

And, That’s Official