Rivalry games spark emotions
It’s rivalry week for Bay Area football teams.
Some carry playoff ramifications: Antioch at Pittsburg, Liberty- Brentwood at FreedomOakley, Acalanes- Lafayette at Miramonte- Orinda.
Others not so much: Burlingame at San Mateo, Amador Valley- Pleasanton at FoothillPleasanton, Menlo SchoolAtherton vs. Sacred Heart Prep- Atherton at Foothill CollegeLos Altos Hills.
Either way, emotions run high both on the field among competitors and off the field among communities.
“We’ve been playing these games for decades, approaching a century,” said Pittsburg coach Vic Galli, whose program has played Antioch 100 times in the Big Little Game.
Pittsburg, which hosts Antioch at 7 p. m. Friday, leads the overall series 66- 27- 7. “There’s a whole lot of people still around who have been involved in the game.”
On the Peninsula, Saturday’s 11 a. m. Burlingame- San Mateo matchup — the Little Big Game — is the 90th in the series. Burlingame holds a 53- 32- 4 edge.
“It’s really a tremendous event,” Burlingame coach John Philipopoulos said. “Just get there early to find parking.”
But combine parking frustrations and community rivalries with some hard- hitting football competition and things can get out of hand in a hurry.
Two East Bay games — KennedyRichmond at El Cerrito ( Sept. 29) and Skyline at Oakland Tech ( Oct. 6) — were stopped early because of fighting by fans in the stands and surrounding areas.
Both games were deemed “no contests,” meaning no record of either game will be made.
The Oakland Athletic League took action after the Skyline- Tech cancellation, allowing only students from competing schools to attend games. All other minors may attend, but must be accompanied by an adult.
There were also problems at Kezar Stadium on Oct. 20 when Mission and Galileo played.
After a Mission player was called for a late hit following a kickoff, Mission players entering the field to huddle began sprinting toward the Galileo sideline. More Mission players followed as did coaches to restrain their players.
Besides the late hit, two offsetting unsportsmanlike- conduct penalties were called, which irritated Galileo coach Mark Huynh.
Doesn’t “leaving your own bench during an altercation warrant an ejection?” asked Huynh, who sent a video of the incident to San Francisco Section Commissioner Don Collins and the head of the referees’ association. “If that’s the case, the whole Mission team should have been ejected.”
A Mission starter was later ejected for a late hit ( and suspended for a game), but the bench- clearing incident came and went without additional discipline.
“I’m glad the referees did see that, but there’s a bigger picture here,” Huynh said. “I was really proud of our kids for keeping their poise when they came at our bench. That could have been a very dangerous situation.”