The Saint Xavier Tigers will take the field at L&N Stadium on Friday, September 23, at 8 p.m. against the Trinity Shamrocks in one of the greatest high school rivalry games dating all the way back to 1956.
Before losing to Trinity in the regular season last year, St. X had won the previous two matchups with wins in 2022 and 2021. In 2022, the Tigers won a defensive battle vs the Shamrocks by a score of 13-8. A deep touchdown pass to Zack Marks from quarterback Adam Boone gave the Tigers the lead in the fourth quarter and boosted them to victory. In the all-time series, the Shamrocks have the upper hand over the Tigers by a score of 50-40-2. The Tigers are expecting a much better performance than last year against their rivals in what could be a very sloppy and wet game with heavy rainfall expected all day on Friday.
St. X enters the game with a 2-2 record after a heartbreaking loss in Cincinnati to Elder this past Friday, 17-15. Trinity enters the game at 4-1, coming off a comeback win at home against Male 24-21.
Junior quarterback Mason Trimble will be leading the Tigers against Trinity. In the absence of senior running back Manny Gray, the Tigers have relied on Trimble much more with the passing game. Senior quarterback Thomas Andriole has been relied on in red zone situations as a running threat, which adds to the dynamic package of the offense.
Although the Tigers have lost two straight games, the passing offense led by Trimble looks like the best St. X passing offense in a long time. The forecast does not help the Tigers, as the rain can only hurt their passing game. Even with the rain, for the Tigers to win this game, they need get going quickly.
“I would say our offense needs to come out strong and score fast,” Trimble said. “I think if we execute and do the little things right, the offense will have a big night.”
Another reason for the success of the passing offense is the elite wide receiver core, which features seniors Anthony Barbee and Kyle Krupp, as well as juniors Marlon Harbin and Lucas Shelton. The wide receivers have been getting open downfield and making incredible plays for the Tigers. To beat Trinity, the Tigers are going to have to continue their success in the passing game, while also finding a rhythm in the run game. As the last two games for the Tigers proved, it will be hard to win if they cannot find success running the football. With the rain being another added factor, the Tigers need to run the ball better than they have over the past two weeks in order to win the game.
The biggest key to the game will be the Tiger’s defense and how it faces the challenge against Trinity’s offense. The Tigers defense has tons of experience, with many of the starters being seniors. This experience will help out big in a rivalry game. In the wet conditions, Trinity will likely run the ball often. The St. X defense will be tasked with stopping the run during sloppy conditions. One leader on the Tigers defense is senior linebacker Devin Ryan, who understands the importance of togetherness in a game like this.
“We need to play together; it’s going to take all of us,” Ryan said. “If everyone takes care of their responsibilities, there is no doubt in my mind we will come out on top.”
Another leader on the Tigers defense, senior cornerback Rocco Poynter, said they need to have a good start and put themselves in a good position to succeed.
“I would say the biggest thing is starting the game off strong,” Poynter said. “If we can hold the offense in the first and second possessions of the game, then we won’t be trailing early on and have to put more pressure on ourselves to make a comeback.”
The Tigers defense will need to work as one group on Friday in order to stop Trinity’s offense, and put the Tigers in a good position to win the game from the start. If St. X trails early, the rain could make it more challenging for them to comeback.
With the predicted forecast, St. X and Trinity will play the game through any amount of rain. The cause for cancellation of the game would be lightning. However, the game was canceled in 2006 due to heavy rain after the first quarter. If the game is canceled, it will be impossible to reschedule.
Rain or shine, expect L&N Stadium to be rocking for this year’s installment of the state’s greatest rivalry game.
