Warren East at Allen County-Scottsville: New Era Meets Old Rival

There is a little more going on Friday night in Scottsville than just another 4A District 1 game.

Warren East (5-1) travels to Allen County-Scottsville (1-5) for a game with plenty of history behind it, even if these two programs are currently heading in very different directions.

And if you're a Warren East fan, this is probably one of those games where you don't want to spend too much time looking at the records.

Because this series has a way of making things interesting.

THE NEW GUY VS. THE OLD GUY

Jason Foley is in Year 1 at Warren East.

On the other sideline is Brad Hood, now in Year 21 at Allen County-Scottsville.

That's quite a contrast.

Foley is trying to establish the beginning of something at Warren East. He was 77-37 before this season. Hood is trying to get ACS back to the program he built over two decades.

THE SERIES IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK

Here's the part that makes this rivalry worth talking about.

Warren East leads the series 13-11 through 24 meetings since 2004.

That's basically a toss-up over the history of the matchup.

And the recent history has been anything but boring.

In 2019, the teams played twice. Warren East won the regular-season meeting 27-10, only for ACS to come back and win the playoff rematch 27-25.

Then came 2024.

ACS won 35-31 in a game that came down to the wire.

Last year, Warren East answered with a 30-14 victory.

So if somebody tells you this series is just about the current records, they're missing quite a bit of the story.

THE NUMBERS

Warren East has been one of the more interesting teams in the area this season.

The Raiders are 5-1, with the only loss coming by one point to Greenwood.

Their six game scores:

Warren East 35, Ohio County 0
Greenwood 15, Warren East 14
Warren East 21, Central Hardin 0
Warren East 14, Warren Central 0
Warren East 40, Calloway County 14
Warren East 31, Franklin-Simpson 28

That's 155 points scored and only 57 allowed.

One of Foley's first major moves was bringing in Randal Parmley from the Glasgow staff to run the defensive side of the ball. Parmley had spent the previous five years as an assistant at Glasgow. The Raiders are allowing just 9.5 points per game, currently the top scoring defense in 4A, with three shutouts.

And the defense isn't the only reason Warren East is 5-1.

THE RAIDERS CAN SCORE, TOO

The offense has really started to roll.

Brandon McClusky gives Warren East an explosive running threat at quarterback, while Azzarrious "Zari" Douglas is the kind of player who can turn a small opening into a huge play.

"Dynamite in a bottle" might be the best way to describe Douglas.

Warren East isn't simply trying to win 14-7 games and rely on the defense anymore.

They're capable of putting points on the board in a hurry.

TP94 Rankings

This is where the numbers get really interesting.

As of the September 24 TP94 ratings:

Warren East - 35.06

Allen County-Scottsville - 15.60

TP94 gives us something beyond simply looking at the records by factoring in results and strength of schedule and I would say definitely one of the most accurate measuring sticks out there.

And Warren East's schedule isn't exactly a walk through the park. The Raiders have already played Greenwood, Central Hardin, Warren Central, Calloway County and Franklin-Simpson.

The only blemish is that 15-14 loss to Greenwood.

BUT THEN THERE'S AIDEN GRAINGER

This is the one thing that makes me hesitate before completely dismissing ACS.

Aiden Grainger.

Grainger has been out with mono since Week 4, and he's reportedly averaging approximately 153 yards per game.

That's a massive piece of the ACS offense.

And now the question everybody wants answered:

Does Aiden Grainger play Friday night?

If he's cleared and actually takes the field, that's a significant variable for the Warren East defense.

ACS has struggled to generate offense during Grainger's absence, and getting a player averaging 153 yards per game back into the lineup would obviously give the Patriots another weapon.

So...

Is Aiden Grainger coming back?

That's probably the biggest personnel question surrounding this game.

AND THEN THERE'S THE FIELD...

Now we get into the part Warren East fans aren't going to forget.

Two years ago, there was plenty of talk surrounding the field conditions in Scottsville, including the suspicion that the field was intentionally flooded in an effort to slow down the Raiders in a week of no rain.

I still haven't found a reliable source that independently confirms that accusation, so I'm not going to state it as fact.

But as rivalry folklore?

It's absolutely part of the story.

And if Mother Nature happens to make the field a mess Friday night, I'm sure the message boards won't let anybody forget about it.

HOMEcoming, RIVALRY AND DISTRICT FOOTBALL

There's another wrinkle.

It's Allen County-Scottsville Homecoming.

ACS is promoting this year's Warren East game as its Homecoming game, and the school has described the matchup as a district rivalry with playoff implications.

So while the records are 5-1 and 1-5, this isn't just another Friday night.

It's Homecoming.

It's a district game.

It's a rivalry.

And it's a chance for ACS to change the narrative surrounding the program.

THE BIG QUESTION

On paper, there is a pretty significant statistical gap.

5-1 vs. 1-5.

35.06 vs. 15.60 in TP94.

But that's exactly why this game is interesting.

This series is 13-11 all-time since 2004.

It's Foley in Year 1 against Hood in Year 21.

It's a Warren East team that has found an identity on both sides of the ball.

It's an ACS team looking for a spark.

And hovering over all of it is one question:

Does Aiden Grainger come back?

If he does, Friday night gets a lot more interesting.

If he doesn't, Warren East will have to avoid doing the one thing that can make a rivalry game dangerous:

giving the other team a reason to believe.

Friday night in Scottsville.

Homecoming.

District game.

Rivalry.

Let's see what happens.

Heard one of the players say after the game that the WE raiders had the best record in the city of BG. Wonder when the last time that happened was? lol and I know the schedules haven't been the same either.

WE 5-1

SW 4-2

BG 2-4

GW 2-4

WC 1-5

Warren East wins this one handedly.

WE 42

Allen 8

Bump.

ACSvsWE YouTube broadcast