Tug for the jug

By Brent Hinckley

Thursday, Aug. 28, 2008 | midnight

The high school football season begins as one of the state's oldest rivalries continues Friday at Basic's Don Taylor Stadium.

Basic and Boulder City High will play for the 45th time, and the Eagles are hoping to beat the Wolves for the first time in 30 years.

"It's long overdue," Boulder City coach Alex Kazel said. "Everyone's excited for this game. This is my first game as varsity coach and it should be a good experience."

The winner will claim "The Jug," an old milk jug that became the game's trophy in the 1970s.

Boulder City leads the all-time series 27-15-2, but this will only the sixth meeting between the teams since 1978 and Basic has won the last five times, including a 25-16 victory last year.

"It's going to be a fun way to start the season. Everyone starts with the same record and anything can happen," Basic coach Jeff Cahill said. "I'm looking forward to seeing what our guys can do and keep the streak going."

The rivalry dates back to the 1940s, but fizzled in the 1980s when Boulder City and Basic where placed in different classifications. Basic eventually developed rivalries with other schools such as Green Valley High, while Boulder City formed rivalries with Moapa Valley and Virgin Valley.

Now, there will be more fuel added to the fire in this year's meeting.

Eagles coach Alex Kazel is a Basic grad and spent nearly a decade working as a teacher and assistant coach at the school before coming to Boulder City last spring.

"This is the type of place I want to be. It's what Basic and Henderson used to be and I'm glad to be here," Kazel said. "I think this is going to be a very exciting year for us."

Basic coach Jeff Cahill is no stranger to the rivalry either.

Cahill, a 1992 Basic graduate, has been a varsity assistant at Basic from 2002 to 2005 and was the school's junior varsity coach for the last two seasons. He was an assistant coach at Boulder City from 1995 to 2000, while his father, Dan Cahill was the head coach, before returning to Basic.

"I enjoyed my time in Boulder City, but my heart is at Basic," Jeff Cahill said. "There's no place I'd rather be."

Despite the history between the two teams, the players are more concerned about starting the season with a win.

"We're ready to play a game and get things going," Basic senior running back Anthony Ireland said. "I'm just happy the season's finally here."

Ireland rushed for 103 yards and a touchdown in last year's game. The win started a five-game win streak for the Wolves.

"That win gave us some momentum for the first few weeks," Wolves senior linebacker Jeff Pozdol said. "It's not a league game, so we can use it to see where we're at."

Eagles senior quarterback Jake Phillips said he wants to end the streak and bring 'The Jug' back to Boulder City.

"We let them beat us in the first half, but we beat them in the second. I think we're a better team this year, and it's going to be a good game," Phillips said.

Senior tight end Jeremy Smith said the new coaching staff has the team prepared for the start of the season.

"We're like a whole new team. We have new helmets, new coaches and new plays," Smith said. "It's a feeling of success. The coaches are excited and we're excited to play."

Brent Hinckley is a reporter for the Home News. He can be reached at 990-2687 or [email protected].