BY RYAN T. BLYSTONE [email protected]
There’s a tradition that's been developing over the past 17 years for all Liberty High football players, coaches, administrators, alumni, parents and fans at this time of year. And they share it with another school.
“Historically over the years, Liberty and Central have played each other, and twice a year sometimes,” Liberty football Coach Richie Bolin said. “We play them in the nonleague portion of our schedule and we seem to end up playing them in the playoffs. So, historically, if you want to go to the valley championship, you have to play Central.”
Seventeen times, actually, Central and Liberty have met on a football field. The Patriots hold a 9-8 edge dating back to the first game played in 2007, a 20-0 Liberty victory.
So it likely wasn’t a surprise when Bolin saw the CIF Central Section bracket revealed last Saturday with the usual opponent next to Liberty's name. Fresno-based Central will host the Patriots in a Division I-AA game at 7 p.m. Friday. Central is seeded third in the section’s largest-division level. Liberty, South Yosemite River League champions, is the sixth seed.
Back on Sept. 20 in a non-league game, Central beat Liberty, 41-14. In 2023, Liberty won 35-14 in the regular season, but in the Division I semifinals, No. 7 seed Central beat No. 3 seed Liberty, 35-21.
Ready for the rematch, Coach? Sure seems like it.
“We play them in the nonleague season because we want to see where we’re at,” Bolin said about the 2024 Week 4 game. “For us, I think we’ve grown so much since that game, we’ve gotten a lot better, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Our defense has been stout all season. Now it’s a matter of game planning on what they look like now instead of what they were back then.”
What’s not changed? “They’re just very fast, athletic and they are very well-coached,” he said.
Bolin is hoping a strength for the Patriots all season — the guys in the trenches — can give the team a chance to extend the season.
“A big thing for us, especially in the last six weeks, has been our ability to control the line of scrimmage,” he said. “We have a lot of really good players on the offensive and defensive line. They’re physical and they’re all game changers, guys like Quinn Buckey, Chad Troxler, Blake Carson, Jacob Ramos, Max Harding and Dakota Garcia. It’s a big test for them on Friday.”
There’s a tradition that's been developing over the past 17 years for all Liberty High football players, coaches, administrators, alumni, parents and fans at this time of year. And they share it with another school.
“Historically over the years, Liberty and Central have played each other, and twice a year sometimes,” Liberty football Coach Richie Bolin said. “We play them in the nonleague portion of our schedule and we seem to end up playing them in the playoffs. So, historically, if you want to go to the valley championship, you have to play Central.”
Seventeen times, actually, Central and Liberty have met on a football field. The Patriots hold a 9-8 edge dating back to the first game played in 2007, a 20-0 Liberty victory.
So it likely wasn’t a surprise when Bolin saw the CIF Central Section bracket revealed last Saturday with the usual opponent next to Liberty's name. Fresno-based Central will host the Patriots in a Division I-AA game at 7 p.m. Friday. Central is seeded third in the section’s largest-division level. Liberty, South Yosemite River League champions, is the sixth seed.
Back on Sept. 20 in a non-league game, Central beat Liberty, 41-14. In 2023, Liberty won 35-14 in the regular season, but in the Division I semifinals, No. 7 seed Central beat No. 3 seed Liberty, 35-21.
Ready for the rematch, Coach? Sure seems like it.
“We play them in the nonleague season because we want to see where we’re at,” Bolin said about the 2024 Week 4 game. “For us, I think we’ve grown so much since that game, we’ve gotten a lot better, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Our defense has been stout all season. Now it’s a matter of game planning on what they look like now instead of what they were back then.”
What’s not changed? “They’re just very fast, athletic and they are very well-coached,” he said.
Bolin is hoping a strength for the Patriots all season — the guys in the trenches — can give the team a chance to extend the season.
“A big thing for us, especially in the last six weeks, has been our ability to control the line of scrimmage,” he said. “We have a lot of really good players on the offensive and defensive line. They’re physical and they’re all game changers, guys like Quinn Buckey, Chad Troxler, Blake Carson, Jacob Ramos, Max Harding and Dakota Garcia. It’s a big test for them on Friday.”