Central at Cape, the Battle of Route 9, has produced 47 years of stories

Battle of Route 9 - The football game between Cape and Sussex Central has been played continuously since 1969, so counting on your fingers by 10s, that’s 47 years. The game closed out the season for most of that time, and emotions for the players were volatile and close to the edge, neither team could stand the thought of losing to the other. There were conflagrations of contact after whistles and sometimes after the game itself. Then it was over forever, as players moved through adulthood seeing and knowing each other over a lifetime. The game was moved into the middle of the schedule to lessen its focus and emotional impact. It’s now what is considered a “friendly rivalry” and battle of eastside versus westside Route 9 rivals that is always decided by the team who controls the north-south ground game on the football field. Sussex Central has won seven of the last eight meetings, averaging 33 points per game. The only loss was a 43-28 scoring fest at Cape in 2013. On Friday night, Oct. 7 at Legends Stadium, it will be a battle of 3-1 teams, with Cape coming off a 37-0 win over Polytech while the Golden Knights rolled over Sussex Tech 49-14. The Delaware Wing T is run by both offenses. From the stands, it doesn’t look that hard to stop, just don’t try playing linebacker or following the ball with a camera.

Coors congruity - I’m set up and sitting in a blue field chair behind the red corner flag ready to take photos of the Selbyville at Mariner soccer game Oct. 3. An official comes by just before “drop down,” the opposite of “tip off,” in a game played with your feet, and I asked him “Am I OK sitting here?” He stares at me quizzically like I’m an overpriced painting at a sideline art show. “As long as that’s not a beer next to your chair, you’re OK,” he said. It was a Diet Coke in a silver can. I realized in the shadow of Dogfish he thought I was Silver Bullet guy maybe because I look like Bob Seger, we are the same age and still “Running Against the Wind.” A bit of self reflection, “Fredman at a middle school soccer game with a $5,000 camera rig and a $2 beer sitting on a cheesy chair?” If I want to go out like that, believe it - I will.

The actual game - Both Selbyville and Mariner are good soccer teams, both squads came into the game at Mariner undefeated. There was plenty of up and down action in the first half. The game was tied at 2 at the interlude, which is where it ended. With soccer clubs like The River and Henlopen and a heavy Hispanic influence, the future of downstate soccer looks bright. It’s time for upstate Delaware to stop owning it. Connor Hochrein and Chancelor Johnson were the scorers for Mariner soccer, while Forrest Dotterer played goalie.

Middle school volleyball - I watched my first middle school volleyball game, Beacon versus Smyrna, Oct. 4. There was one chair in the entire gym and when a woman got up onto her walker to get a drink, I stole it. Volleyball is an enthusiastic sport, an on-court party after every point scored. I was amazed how well these girls played the game. Beacon had to cut a bunch of people after 60 girls tried out. Smyrna won game one 25-12 and game two 25-23 in the best of three setup. But there is talent out there and it’s a fun sport to play. Just like soccer downstate, it is going to be a statewide player in the near future.

Who’ll stop the brain - Grand Mom Rose: “A satisfied mind for a smart person is only achieved through effort, not the lack of it.” I think of that quote every time I see smart people over-leveraging their interest in sports, which will always come back to kick you in the head and bite you in the butt at the same time. But when sitting under a tree with a book, you own the planet and the universe inside your own skull. 

Snippets - There is now a Cape Henlopen Football Alumni Association. The website is CHFAA.org and an email address is CapeFootballAlum@gmail.com. If you see Haywood Burton, Matt Graviet, Trip Delcampo, Jonny Howard or Sean McCarthy, they will tell you all about it. The Cape Crusaders will be doing their Winner Winner Chicken Dinner fundraiser Saturday, Oct. 8, by Outlet Liquors next to the Nike Outlet. Platters are available from 10 a.m to 5 p.m. Eat like a hurricane is coming and enjoy your time inside the cone of uncertainty. Go on now, git!