by Malcolm Butler
There won’t be any district championship implications tonight at Origin Bank Stadium.
But, that doesn’t mean there won’t be plenty on the line.
Cedar Creek hosts longtime rival St. Frederick at 7 p.m. in the Cougars’ 2026 home opener, renewing a rivalry that has produced its share of memorable — and sometimes heated — moments through the years.
“It’s a lot of bragging rights and a lot of pride involved,” Cedar Creek coach Jacob Angevine said. “I remember some basketball games over the last couple of years where there’s been some heated things between the student sections. It’s one of those games where everybody takes it pretty seriously, and it’s been going on for way longer than I’ve been there.”
For the Cougars, there is also the memory of how the 2025 season ended.
St. Frederick eliminated Cedar Creek from the playoffs in convincing manner last November, giving a number of returning Cougars a little extra motivation heading into Friday night’s rematch.
Angevine hasn’t shied away from reminding his players of that loss, but he also stressed that the Cougars are much different from the team St. Frederick faced in the postseason.
“Yeah, they ended your season last year, and I want you to have that taste in your mouth,” Angevine said. “But, man, we are a much different roster makeup this year compared to last year.
“We had a lot of guys that have been big players for us so far early on this year that didn’t play in that playoff game. We’ve had some newcomers come in that weren’t with us last year either. Our roster makeup right now is so much better than it was when we played them last year.”
Cedar Creek (1-0) opened the season with a convincing 55-14 road win over Delhi Charter last Friday despite playing in rainy conditions. The Cougars established their running game immediately, with sophomore Payton Harris racing 48 yards for a touchdown on Cedar Creek’s first offensive snap of the season.
While running the football remains the foundation of the Cedar Creek offense, Angevine hopes to see the Cougars take another step in the passing game Friday night.
“I’d love to see our passing game get a little bit more involved,” Angevine said. “It’s one of the things that we worked on a lot this summer. We worked on it a lot in the scrimmage and the jamboree. Of course, Week One, we had all that rain that came out of nowhere.
“But I think it was good for us to say, ‘Hey, look, even with us going back to our bread and butter, that is still our identity.’ We want to be able to run the football. But our guys have had a really good week throwing it around.”
The Cougars may see something familiar when they line up across from St. Frederick.
Angevine said the two offenses have plenty of similarities, making the matchup particularly important along the line of scrimmage.
“It’s a carbon copy of us, basically,” Angevine said. “It’s the same exact offense. Their terminology may be a little bit different than ours, but it’s going to be a game that’s going to be won in the trenches. It’s going to be who wants it more.
“We’ve beat our big guys down a good bit this week, just telling them, ‘Hey, look, we’re getting you ready for an all-out war on Friday night.'”
Angevine also wants to see the same pursuit and energy defensively that the Cougars showed in their season opener.
“Defensively, just keep flying to the football,” Angevine said. “I think we’ve got a really good scheme drawn up for them. We’ve got a good game plan, and the kids just have to go out there and execute it.”
St. Frederick has controlled the series in recent years, something Angevine knows well from his various coaching stops on the Cedar Creek sideline.
Now he would like to start changing that trend.
“We’re looking forward to getting one back,” Angevine said. “What better way to do it than our home opener in front of a huge crowd and just to set the tone for the 2026 season?”
And despite it being only Week Two, Angevine expects Friday night’s atmosphere to feel like something much bigger.
“I know T.O. (St. Frederick coach Tony Osborne) is going to have his guys ready to go,” Angevine said. “I think it’s going to be an all-out war.”
