When the ball is kicked in the air Friday night, five Wolverine seniors will enter their final season donning the royal blue, gold and white school colors. Whitmire Community School plays host Ridge Spring-Monetta in non-region action at 7:30 p.m.

This is the first meeting between the two schools in three years. The Wolverines and the Trojans are looking for a turnaround year after going 3-8 and 2-8, respectively.

The coaching match-up between Wolverines head coach Donald Addis and Trojans head coach Mark Rodgers dates back to their assistant coaching days when Rodgers coached at Great Falls and Addis at Jonesville.

WCS will rely on a sound running game to produce sustainable drives and set-up the passing game vs. Ridge Spring-Monetta‘s defense which returns inside linebacker Tim Daniels. Daniels is a three-year starter for the Trojans.

Senior running back Tim Epps and sophomore Jordan Baker will be called on to carry most of the load.

Junior quarterback Traccey Ruff will also be critical to the Wolverines rushing game. At 6’3”, 210 lbs, the signal caller has the size to present problems for the defense. A shotgun spread offense allows offensive coordinators to call quarterback running plays more often because of their depth in the backfield. Look for Whitmire’s offensive coordinator Chris Martin to use Ruff’s raw abilities soon and often.

“We’re hoping Traccey can be a threat,” Addis said about his first-year quarterback.

WCS will try to put a strain on the Trojan’s 3-4 defense by spreading the offensive alignment with three wide outs. Senior Chris Rice is a two-year starter and brings experience to the position.

The Trojans’ are coming off an uncharacteristic year after playing for the state title in ‘06, the upper state in ‘07 and a playoff berth in ‘08.

“Last year, we lost four starters in the first game vs. Strom Thurmond and we never seemed to recover. It was an injury-ridden year,” Rodgers said.

Ridge Spring-Monetta was outscored 345-127 by opponents last year, a stat this year’s team will look to improve.

The Trojans offense runs from a power-I. Rodgers adds a twist to the traditional two-back set by adding a third running back in an “L” shaped formation. Tailbacks Shelton Wiggins, Shafee Jerry and all-state fullback Malcombe Harris will start in the backfield for the Trojans.

Defensively, the Trojans use a 3-4 defense and Rodgers says Daniels’ performance is a key to its success.

This game should be a tight contest with both teams trying to shake off the early season jitters. Look for the Wolverines to make some big plays on offense behind returning starter Seth Shouse. The game’s winner will be determined by who is in the best physical shape and has the fewest turnovers.