ONIDA – Rivals Sully Buttes and Potter County will have their first playoff football clash in seven years in Onida on Thursday in the first round of the 9B playoffs.
Sully Buttes, the fourth seed, finished the regular season 6-2 after starting 5-0. Losses to Herreid/Selby Area and Lyman were followed by a resounding 32-14 victory last Friday at home over Corsica-Stickney.
Potter County, the 13th seed, is 3-5 and assured themselves of a playoff spot with last Friday’s 42-14 victory over Sunshine Bible Academy.
In the regular season meeting August 26th in Onida, Sully Buttes dominated in a 36-6 victory after the Chargers had lost to the Battlers in the previous two seasons.
Adding some sadness to what otherwise should be a great playoff atmosphere is the passing last Saturday of former Sully Buttes Head Coach Mark Senftner. First-year Chargers’ Head Coach Tom Moore reflected on his longtime colleague and friend.
Moore doesn’t think this meeting with Potter County will have a 30-point difference.
Battlers’ Head Coach Vern Smith said that the younger players that had to step in after the graduation of many from the stars from last year’s 9B finalist team have progressed well this season.
Smith said that his team is different, and better, than in the game with Sully Buttes in August.
Since the Potter County co-op began in 2011, the Battlers and Chargers have won seven times each. The last playoff game between these programs was a 16-8 win for Sully Buttes in Onida in the first round of the 2015 9B playoffs.
Coverage of Thursday’s game will begin at 6:30 on STAR 99, the STAR 99 page at the DRG News App, and at the STAR 99 page at drgnews.com, with live and archived video also available. Dave Williams and KC Meiners will call the action.
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