So, the Gardiner Area High School football team Friday night won the 131st meeting with Cony 14-13 before an estimated crowd of 3,900 at Hoch Field.

The game featured plenty of big plays and big mistakes between two teams whose offenses really couldn't be more opposite.

The Tigers like the run, and run they did. They amassed 236 yards on the ground, 127 coming from new tailback Forrest Chadwick.

The Rams, meanwhile, want to run, but Friday night they had to pass.

Gardiner just had too much size up front, courtesy of Andy Kelley and Isac Cone, forcing Cony to spread the field a bit.

Sophomore quarterback Nick Lucas had an interesting debut for the Rams. He threw for 269 yards and a touchdown, but also four interceptions.

The Cony coaches and players liked what they saw from the youngster, who acknowledged he still has plenty to learn.

"I thought I threw the ball OK, but I didn't make good decisions," he said.

Fair enough. But this much is clear: Lucas can throw a good ball. He isn't the strongest quarterback $ Cony coach Robby Vachon several times on the sideline reminded his quarterback to stay away from the middle of the field if nothing was there $ but he's accurate.

He put up a nice pass to Luke Duncklee, who needed every inch of his extended frame $ including the finger tips $ to haul in a 31-yard touchdown reception.

"I thought he did a good job," Cony tailback Greg O'Neill said of his quarterback.

Although the Rams don't have the size that Gardiner boasts, they have some speed at the wideout position, particularly Ray Cotnoir (6 catches, 65 yards).

The perimeter passing certainly caught the attention of Gardiner coach Jim Palmer.

"We tried to man up with it, but it wasn't the best situation," he said. "They gave us some stuff to look at."