Vikings, Hurons set for rivalry game

ROGERS CITY -- It may only be week two of the high school football season, but it already brings a big-time contest between a pair of inner-county rivals. Rogers City (1-0 overall) hosts Presque Isle County foe Posen (1-0) tonight; and all signs point to it being another good matchup.

"We consider each other rivals and it is two quality teams butting heads," Posen coach Greg Pietsch said. "These kids know each other from little league, youth football and youth sports."

This marks the third straight season the squads have met as 8-player programs. Rogers City has won the previous two contests; though they were both battles. In 2021 the Hurons led 12-0 at the half before pulling away to win 38-0. Last fall, Posen led 6-0 at the half, only to see the Hurons rally with a pair of second half touchdowns for a 12-6 victory.

"I feel like it will be more of the same, another dog fight," Rogers City head coach Jesse Fenstermaker said. "It doesn't matter what the record is when you play your rival, you always get the best game from both teams and that is what is going to be in this game. Both want to win and will grind it out until the end."

The Vikings and Hurons were each playoff teams in 2022. Posen brings back many key players from that squad while Rogers City returns just four.

"I'm excited, the kids are excited, this is what makes high school football in small towns a lot of fun," Pietsch said. "It is going to have a big game atmosphere with playoff implications early on, but we are just going to play our game and just be fundamentally sound and play tough football."

The Vikings certainly played good football last week. They defeated Pellston 50-26, in a game they all but had wrapped up at the half with a 30-0 lead.

Jack Romel ran for 189 yards and five touchdowns and he also threw for another 53 yards. Eli Chojnacki had 74 yards on the ground and Ethan Romel, Logan Timm and John Ennest proved to be offensive weapons to look out for as well.

"I think they will be prepared, coach Pietsch does a great job preparing his guys," Fenstermaker said. "I expect their best game and that they are going to be ready to play. They have some great talent there."

The Hurons managed to defeat a vastly improved Charlton Heston Academy team, 30-6 in their opener. Isaac Paull unsurprisingly had a big night running the ball, carrying it 22 times for 153 yards and he also had 35 yards receiving. Charles Allen threw for 74 yards and also had a pair of short touchdown runs. Austin Fenstermaker had a touchdown running as well and Josh Altman is another Huron offensive weapon to look out for.

"We have a tremendous amount of respect for their coaches and players, and they have some really good quality players," Pietsch said. "They have a lot of kids in their program and have a good program going. It is going to be a tough game, but I think we are going to be up for the challenge here."

Two nearby rivals. Two teams loaded with talent. The stage is certainly set for another classic, and Fenstermaker expects both communities to come out in droves.

"It shows both schools have so much school spirit in both towns," he said. "There is nothing like having the entire field lit up and all you see is people all the way around. It is a pretty cool thing to see the amount of people that show up to a rivalry game."