Leave it to St. Pius coach Paul Standard to add the perfect context to the Marist-St. Pius rivalry.
“There’s about four or five churches, where I would say the majority of kids come from,” Standard explained. “I feel bad for the folks who have to sit in those pews after this game.”
The 50th edition of the Marist-St. Pius X rivalry features a pair of ranked teams ready to roll behind improved offensive lines. The winner is a virtual lock to claim the top seed out of the region.
No. 9 St. Pius has bounced back from back-to-back opening losses to win three in a row. The Golden Lions (3-2, 3-0) have won three straight games, including last season's 10-9 nail-biter. But historically Marist has owned this rivalry. The War Eagles are 30-16-3 all-time against St. Pius, according to the Georgia High School Historians Association.
No. 6 Marist (5-1, 4-0) also has regrouped after losing its opener. Coach Alan Chadwick points to his offensive line as one of the catalysts for his team’s improvement. Seniors Chet Lagod, Dillon Hartigan, Eric Lee and juniors Joseph Manley and Charlie Clark comprise what Chadwick says “has developed into one of the better offensive lines we’ve ever had.” The War Eagles are averaging 317.7 yards per game on the ground, 6.6 yards per carry.
St. Pius coach Paul Standard has similar praise for his offensive line made up of seniors Chad Nelson, Eric Long, Chris McNulty, Griffin Loflin and junior Blake Harrison.
“Our formula for success has always been to hopefully be able to control the football and keep the other team’s offense off the field,” Standard said. “If you leave your defense out there against a good team like Marist, they’re going to score. So it is critical that our offensive line is aggressive and execute the schemes that we have so we can move the chains.”
Moving the chains was an issue in the Golden Lions’ opening loss to Blessed Trinity. They got caught behind the changes and were unable to protect quarterback Reed Egan in passing situations.
“Our pass protection was probably our biggest liability early in the year,” Standard said. “It has gotten better, but quite frankly Blessed Trinity is a pretty good football team. They were big and strong and brought more people than we can block and exposed our pass protection.”
The game is at St. Pius. Tickets are on sale early at the school bookstore. Parking is limited. St. Pius encourages visiting fans to use the shuttle service. There is also a public parking lot next to the baseball field that is free.
"Better get here early, because there won be a seat in the house," Standard said.
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