FERRIDAY — The No. 1-seed Ferriday High Trojans will face the No. 2-seed Many High School Tigers for the Class 2A state championship at 3:30 p.m. today in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

Today’s game marks the first time the Trojans have played for the state title in the Superdome since 1984 when the Trojans were runners-up.

Today is believed to be the second matchup between Ferriday and Many, Trojans Head Football Coach Stanley Smith said. The last matchup, Smith said, was in November 1999 when the Trojans lost 45-25 to the Tigers in a LHSAA Class 2A Regional game.

This is the first time the Trojans and Tigers are facing off as No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in the championship game, and Smith said the No. 1 and No. 2 matchup is the way it should be in a championship game.

Two of the Tigers’ players that the Trojans need to stop, Smith said, are Shamrion Wiseman and Terrence Williams. In last week’s 17-14 semifinal round against Kentwood, Wiseman rushed for two touchdowns. During the playoffs this season, Wiseman has rushed for six touchdowns.

On the other hand, Williams has rushed for nine touchdowns this season in the playoffs. Smith said Wiseman and Williams are two big running backs and both are physical.

“They run down field and make some stuff happen with the football,” Smith said. “We have to make sure we tackle well and be physical at the point of attack.”

Two players to watch for the Trojans are Kobe Dillon and Tevyn Byrd. On offense, Dillon has passed for over 1,051 yards and has thrown 17 passing touchdowns in the season. In last Friday’s 42-14 win over Amite High Magnet School, Dillon rushed for three touchdowns and threw one touchdown pass.

Meanwhile, Byrd has caused one fumble and has recovered a fumble on defense this season. He has 107 tackles this season as well. During practices this week, Byrd said he has worked on being more physical and being in the right position on defense.

Besides the players being excited to play in the championship game today, the town of Ferriday has also been excited.

On Wednesday, Trojans fans and people of Ferriday lined the streets and waved goodbye to the team as the Trojans boarded a bus to New Orleans at 8 a.m. The Trojans practiced at Tulane University on Wednesday afternoon.

Byrd said his favorite memory from this week was spending time with his teammates.

“This week has meant a lot to me,” Byrd said. “We have really worked hard all through the whole summer to this point. We have really been pushing each other and it has paid off.”

At Ferriday High on Wednesday, the tickets were sold out. But thanks to former mayor Gene Allen, 46 underprivileged students will attend the game for free. Allen is paying for their food items bought inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome and parking for the Durham School Services.

The LHSAA Class 2A championship game begins at 3:30 p.m. today in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.