Monroeville-St. Paul rivalry highlights Week 10

Fall has finally been in the air this week. That means the end of the high school football regular season, and further, it means the annual Monroeville-St. Paul rivalry takes center stage. Friday's game at 7 p.m. at Contractors Stadium is the 68th all-time meeting between the two Firelands Conference teams separated by six miles. St. Paul leads the series, which started on Oct. 28, 1961, 44-22-1. "To know it's Week 10, it's a culmination of the season, and you want to be playing your best at this point," St. Paul head coach Chris Doughty said. "And there is no bigger test than your biggest rival as you try to get ready for the playoffs." At stake for Monroeville is the outright FC title. This season is the 13th all-time conference title for the Eagles, but just four of those are outright. If Monroeville wins, it would be the first time since 2002 that it finished as outright FC champions. With a loss, the Eagles could share the title with Western Reserve (7-2, 5-1), which will be big favorites at home against New London (3-6, 1-5). Monroeville's playoff status won't be impacted too much, win or lose. The Eagles are already in the Division VII state playoffs as the No. 4 seed in Region 25. New this season, the top four teams per region earn a first-round bye in the state playoffs. With a win on Friday, the Eagles can clinch their spot among the top four and a week of rest. With a loss, Drew Pasteur's fantastic50.net projects the Eagles with a 69 percent chance to remain fourth in the region. "No matter what the record is for us or them, those get thrown out the window," Monroeville head coach Tylor Nester said. "We have to prepare the best we can and focus on one day at a time and getting better. "But this is a game that will have families on both sides, whether it's cousins or relatives that have played for one or another. It's a rivalry game, and anything can happen." That proved true a year ago. The Flyers were also 5-4 and upset the 9-0 Eagles on the road by scoring a touchdown with no time left. St. Paul converted a 2-point conversion for a 29-28 win at Marsh Field. After this Friday, the two will have combined for 40 championships in the 65-year history of the FC. If the Flyers also officially clinch a playoff appearance, the two teams will have combined for 45 playoff appearances. St. Paul is the No. 8 seed in Region 25. Pasteur's site projects the Flyers to finish seventh with a win and a 63 percent chance to remain eighth with a loss. Both scenarios would also give the Flyers a home playoff game next week. "I've been around the rivalry for the last 20 years, and the one thing that stands out to me is how it's always an incredibly physical battle," Doughty said. "Some of the hardest hits I've ever seen in high school football have happened in this matchup. "There is always a ton of emotion, and the fans for both sides really get into the game. We're just looking forward to that opportunity once again to participate in this great rivalry." In a span of 37 years, the Eagles and Flyers have combined for eight regional titles, four state runners-up trophies, and a state championship. The game permanently shifted to Week 10 in 2007. That matchup — a 21-6 win by the Flyers — immediately produced a winner-take-all FC title game. It happened again in 2016 when both teams were undefeated at 9-0 (a 14-8 St. Paul win), then a third time in 2023, a 35-0 win by the Flyers in Norwalk. Only five of the 19 games since the game moved to Week 10 saw the Eagles and Flyers meet in a game that did not have conference title implications for at least one of the two teams. Still, in two of those five games, St. Paul had already clinched the FC title outright. ----------------------------Series facts- All-time series: St. Paul, 44-22-1- Largest Monroeville win: 34-0, 1987- Largest St. Paul win: 48-0, 2014- Most Monroeville points: 39-6, 1988- Most St. Paul points: 56-14, 2008- Most combined points: 84 (St. Paul, 55-29, 2001) Playoff history- 1996 Div. VI regional championship: St. Paul 34, Monroeville 8 (at Lorain)- 1999 Div. VI regional championship: St. Paul, 17-14 (at Bellevue)- 2004 Div. VI regional championship: St. Paul, 30-15 (at Elyria)- 2007 Div. VI first round: St. Paul, 49-21 (at Norwalk)- 2015 Div. VII first round: St. Paul, 28-6 (at Norwalk)- 2016 Div. VII second round: St. Paul, 24-0 (at Perkins)