Perhaps Raines athletic director Doug White said it best when he couldn’t find the keys to open the trophy case inside the field house years ago and had to call a locksmith.
“We haven’t had a need to open it up in a while,” White joked.
The winner of the annual Raines vs. Ribault football game claims the Northwest Classic trophy each year until they lose possession of it; luckily for Raines, they haven’t had to give up since 2010-until now.
Maybe thats why Raines forgot to bring the trophy this year after host Ribault stunned undefeated Raines 19-14 at Arthur White Stadium giving the Trojans their first win over their arch rivals since 2010.
Leading up to the game
The two schools separated by less than a mile, renewed their annual meeting the first Saturday in November in the 46th Annual Northwest Classic at Ribault. Despite the loss, Raines still leads the all-time series 33-13 and had won four in a row and 12 of the last 15 meetings in the series.
In addition to the game, the week begins with players attended St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church together Sunday and continues with Raines vs. Ribault faculty basketball and volleyball games, a pep rally with skits, dinner and both coaches and principals speaking, a fashion show, a bonfire and a parade Saturday morning hours before the game.
Both schools plan their annual class reunions around the game each year, among the classes celebrating this year was the Class of 1975, 1980 and 1985. Hundreds of tents were lined up all around the stadium on both sides full of BBQ, Chicken Wings, party trays and lots of cold beverages.
The neighborhoods all around the stadium rent out their yards for parking some charging $10-20 per car, while d-jays play in the background as the neighbors and alumni not attending the game relax in lounge chairs talking about the old days while drinking adult beverages.
Prior to the game both schools honor Miss Raines and Miss Ribault, checks are provided to each school from nearby businesses.
RESPECT
For the first time since 2013, both teams are going to the playoffs making this one of the most anticipated meetings in a while.
“This rivalry is intense and energetic but there is a lot of camaraderie between both teams, it has a lot of history and tradition to it,” Raines head coach Deran Wiley said.
Wiley knows firsthand about the rivalry having played in it from 1990-1992. Wiley went 2-1 in his three years, including a 13-12 loss his senior year, in which a fight broke out.
“I scored both touchdowns and we lost and it got ugly and a lot of things got away from us,” Wiley stated.
Despite being hated arch-rivals, Wiley and Flynn remain lifetime friends having nothing but the utmost respect for each other. Flynn was Wiley football coach at Northwestern Junior High from 1987-1989.
“Coach Flynn took me under his wing in 1988, I wasn’t that confident about my skills and he taught me how to walk with confidence and have swagger,” Wiley said.
Outgrowing
For over 25 years the annual game was played in the Old Gator Bowl downtown, but when the Jacksonville Jaguars were born the game shifted to First Coast High and eventually back to Raines and Ribault, where it alternates every year.
Its time for it to go back downtown again, as an estimated 10,000 fans attended the game and an estimated 10,000-20,000 more were standing outside the stadium or drifting between the different tents and parties.
Back in the 1950’s till the early 1990s, big games like the annual Lee-Jackson rivalry were played on Thanksgiving Day every year in the Gator Bowl. Other games like Englewood-Wolfson and even Raines-Ribault from 1970 till 1995 were played there as well.
The Past
Raines had won four in a row and 12 out of the last 15 in the series to take a commandingn lead in the series.
They also found a way to always pull out the game in the final minutes as well.
This wasn’t the first time, Ribault was on the verge of ending Raines current winning streak. In 2001, a Raines score in the closing seconds appeared to put a dagger in the Trojans hopes for a win.
However, Anthony Bell returned the ensuing kickoff back for an apparent touchdown but before he crossed the goal line a showboating Bell dropped the ball at the 1-yard line and Raines recovered it for the 24-18 win.
Following the 2001 game, Raines reeled off six straight wins outscoring Ribault 225-31 during that time as the rivalry became one sided again.
A year later that changed again in 2008 as a missed extra point in overtime was the difference as Raines pulled another one out 22-21 over Raines.
“We have to get past the mental side of it, and get the mental upper hand. This is whole different group of guys, last year’s game was a heartbreaking loss, we have to take that experience and turn that situation around,” Flynn said. “I didn’t mention last year’s game at all to them, what’s in the past is the past, we’re all about the present. We have to get the team focused this week, this is a playoff game and every game after this is a playoff game.”
The loss in 2008 was still on the minds of the players in the 2009 classic and again it came down to another final play of the game only this time it was Ribault finally on the winning end.
With Raines clinging to a 21-20 lead all that stood in the way was one final play. All-state wide receiver Javon Bell out jumped three defensive backs in the middle of the endzone and hauled in the game winning catch on the final play of the game giving Ribault a 27-21 win.
In 2010, Raines entered the classic undefeated and full of confidence hosting Ribault in the annual meeting. Unforunatetly, Ribault had other ideas and left with a 32-19 win to capture its second straight win in the series.
Raines rebounded to win the next four in the series to take back the trophy and momentum again.
DEJAVU
Five years after Ribault pulled off the stunning win over undefeated Raines, the Trojans found themselves in the same predicament.
Raines was not only undefeated and coming off an emotional 35-30 win over Bolles to clinch the district title the week before but also a No. 1 ranking in the A.P. state footall poll.
Ribault was a sizeable underdog in the game and wasn’t expected to put up much a fight.
However Ribault had other ideas scoring on its first two possessions of the game to take a 13-0 lead as Derias McGoogin connected with Desean McNair for a 12 yard strike and McNair’s 30 yard run on the Trojans third possession of the game set up McGoogin’s 1-yard sneak with 2:31 left in the first quarter.
Bishop Bonnett cut the lead in half on a 7-yard run cutting the lead to 12-6 with 2:23 left till half.
Ribault answered back as Jhamall Marsh found Michael McCray wide open on a 25-yard stike with thirty seconds left in the half as the Trojans took a 19-6 lead into the half.
Jordan Rivers returned the second half kickoff all the way down to the 32, which set up Augie DeBiase 29-yard touchdown pass on fourth down to Rick Wells cutting the lead to 19-14 five minutes into the third quarter.
On the ensuing possession, Ribault was facing fourth and ten and Raines jumped offsides back to back plays before a play was ran giving the Trojans a first down. Few plays later, McGoogin was hit for a 14 yard loss by Jaquan Bailey, who has commited to Florida, immediately got up and did the Gator Chomp in front of McGoogin and was hit for taunting.
Offsetting penalties forced Ribault into a trying a 28-yard field goal that sailed way short keeping the Vikings in the game still 19-14 heading into the fourth quarter.
THE FINISH
Debiase drove the Vikings down the field quickly but his pass was batted down by Joshua Whitehead and fell into the hands of a diving Cameron Richardson inside the ten yard line.
Raines held Ribault to back-to-back three and outs on its next two drives to take over at midfield with three minutes left in the game.
Three plays later, Debiase was looking deep for Rick Wells who beat the safety who pulled his jersey for the blatant pass interference putting the Vikings at the 35-yard line.
Debiase rumbled 8 yards down to the 16 with less than a minute remaining to put the Vikings in striking distance.
The crowd rose to its feet as both sides stood up anxiously awaiting the final minute of the game.
An illegal man down field backed up the Vikings back to the 26 with plenty of time still in the game. On second down, Debiase looked for Wells in the endzone but the ball sailed out of bounds in the right corner of the endzone.
Charles Williams broke up Debiase pass on third down setting up one final play as the crowd became deafning,
Faced with fourth down from the 26-yard line, Debiase dropped back and tried to hit Ronald Patterson on a quick out pass well short of the endzone however Brandon Thomas stepped in front of Patterson and picked off the pass at the 10 nearly returning all the way back for a score before being tackled by Debiase around the 25 yard line.
After years of seeing Raines pull out the last minute victories in the rivalry, it was finally Ribault’s turn to return the favor.
POSTGAME
Immediately following the game, both teams gather and midfield and lead with prayer followed by positive comments from both schools principals or administration.
The winning team is then presented with the trophy which bares both schools colors maroon and carolina blue and all the scores from the previous games.
However, Raines didn’t bring the trophy with them making the post game celebration a little less dramatic.
Fortunatetly Ribault didn’t go home empty handed though as Churches Chicken presented Anthony Flynn with the Coaches Award trophy presented to the winning team and Desean McNair with the Offensive MVP trophy and the entire defense was awarded the Defensive MVP trophy.
Thanks to my suggestion, Flynn said he would contact school officials and have Raines present Ribault the trophy at one of the schools two scheduled basketball meetings this coming year.
Northwest Classic more than just a game
By Corey Davis
