Round 86 set for Campbell, Struthers

August 27, 2014 at 12:08a.m.

Struthers

When the Campbell Memorial High School football team travels to Struthers Thursday night, the game will mark the 86th renewal of a rivalry that dates to 1925 when Memorial was known as Penhale High School.

While the Red Devils own a 45-38-2 advantage, the Wildcats have held the upper hand over the past decade. Struthers has won the last three outings and eight of the past 10 contests.

Struthers was 9-3 last season and advanced to the second round of the playoffs under head coach Curt Kuntz. That means little on Thursday.

“It’s the opening game of the season,” Kuntz said. “We had so many slots open on both sides of the ball and we’ve made some young mistakes during the pre-season that we need to correct.

“The upside of that is there is plenty of energy,” Kuntz said.

They aren’t the only rivals kicking off early. Western Reserve will visit Columbiana, Girard will travel to Niles while Lisbon visits Leetonia. Also on Thursday, Poland and Marlington renew a regional rivalry that has included a playoff game.

In 2010, Campbell scored the most points ever against the Struthers, winning 51-35 at Laddie Fedor Field.

Last year, Struthers won 39-6 at John Knapick Field and have held Campbell to 29 total points since the 2010 loss.

For the fourth time, Ed Rozum is Campbell’s head coach. He previously coached the Red Devils from 1978-81 1985-92 and 1998-99.

“We aren’t 100 percent healthy, but overall [are] in decent shape,” Rozum said. At stake is the “Steel-Helmet” trophy, which remains in the hands of the winning team.

Struthers holds a 23-17 edge.

Rozum was a Campbell senior when the year the trophy was introduced and remains the only Red Devil to take part in the game as a player, assistant coach and head coach.

“We won that first contest on a field goal by Nick Makridis and that was the only score of the game, Rozum said. “The rivalry between these two schools is always an intense battle and back when I played, the winner usually won the Steel Valley Conference title.”

Now, Campbell and Struthers are members of the All-American Conference, but in separate divisions.