Jesuit hopes it can slay county giant

Posted Aug 30, 2011 by Nick Williams

Updated Aug 31, 2011 at 11:01 AM

If you were to talk to any members of Jesuit’s football team, you’d get the feeling Friday’s game at Plant is by far the biggest game of the year. Bigger than Tampa Catholic you may ask?

“Ten times bigger,” senior defensive tackle Isaac Edwards said.

Like their rivalry with Tampa Catholic, Jesuit and Plant meet annually in several sports like baseball and basketball, but because Plant’s football program has won three state titles in the last five years while garnering national attention, a win over the Panthers Friday would mean everything to the Tigers.

“I think we’ll finally get respect,” Edwards said. “We’re a small school and people say we can’t beat this team or that team, but a win will show we’re for real.”

“If we win, it’ll give us more hype for our school,” said senior quarterback Aaron Paulsen, who will start in Friday’s game. “

But winning at Dad’s Stadium isn’t easy. The atmosphere is intense and the crowd is always loud, almost deafening, which makes it difficult for most teams to communicate on the field.

“That’s not going to be a problem,” Paulsen said. “We’re going to wear (playbook) wristbands.”