The Battle for the Rail: Jackson vs. Hoover rivalry
JACKSON, Ohio — It鈥檚 Rivalry Week on the gridiron in Northeast Ohio. Everywhere throughout the region, teams renew classic grudge matches. From McKinley vs. Massillon to Central Catholic vs. St. Thomas Aquinas, emotions always run high, the pads crack a little louder and everybody seems to kick it up a few extra notches when it comes to earning yearly bragging rights.
One of the people who knows the ins and outs of rivalry football in Northeast Ohio is Jackson head coach Tim Budd, who is preparing his 8-1 Polar Bears for their yearly clash against the 7-2 Hoover Vikings in North Canton. Before taking over at the helm in Jackson, Budd was the man in charge at St. Thomas Aquinas, and participated in the rivalry with Central Catholic, so he already knows what it takes to win games like these.
鈥淏efore Jackson I was the head coach at St. Thomas Aquinas, and we had a big rivalry with Canton Central Catholic, so in both of my head coaching positions, I鈥檝e been blessed to have a natural rival that you play Week 10, and I think that a lot of schools don鈥檛 have that opportunity,鈥� Budd said. 鈥淚t makes the season special no matter how well or poorly things are going, you can always point to Week 10 as a motivator for your players.鈥�
Hoover and Jackson have been squaring off for almost a century, but the addition of a trophy in 2019 has led to an iconic name for the rivalry game around these parts: The Battle for the Rail. The trophy, the brainchild of Jackson Athletic Director Dan Michael, is a golden rail symbolizing the natural geographical divide between Canton and Jackson Township, since a railroad splits the two communities.
The Battle for the Rail may be a fairly new trophy, but it鈥檚 just one reason the Jackson-Hoover rivalry has achieved iconic status around the area. Since he took over at Jackson in 2015, Budd has been involved in his share of pulse-pounding, heart-stopping games between the Polar Bears and Vikings. Many of which come down to the final possession.
鈥淎ll six of these games that I鈥檝e coached in have been settled in either the final play, or close to the final play of the game,鈥� Budd said. 鈥淭hese games have been great. Coach Baum (from Hoover) and I started the same year. In 2015 we scored a couple of late touchdowns in the fourth quarter to win 45-28. Then in 2016, they came back with about five minutes left when we were up 28-17, and they beat us 31-28. Then in 2017 it went to double overtime where we stripped the ball at the one-yard line and recovered to win. They scored with about 58 seconds left to beat us 42-35 in 2018. In 2019, we stopped them on fourth and goal at the inch-line with about 11 seconds left, and last year they beat us 14-13.鈥�
But beyond The Battle for the Rail, and white-knuckle finishes, something more lies at the heart of the Jackson-Hoover year-end clash that makes the rivalry near and dear to both Polar Bear and Viking fans: the sense of community. Many of the players at Jackson and Hoover have known each other long before suiting up for the Polar Bears or Vikings to clash under the lights on Friday nights, and each fanbase is constantly trying to one-up the other.
鈥淎 lot of the players know each other, and have grown up together or have competed against each other coming through youth football,鈥� Budd said. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 the success of both school districts academically, athletically and in the arts. Good community competition, trying to outdo each other and set the standard for Stark County.鈥�
As long as Polar Bear and Viking fans continue to treat the Battle for the Rail with this level of passion and enthusiasm, the rivalry will continue to be one of Northeast Ohio鈥檚 best for generations to come.
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