The Civil War may have officially ended in April of 1865, but two high school football programs in Jackson like to think they rekindle the war one Friday night in the fall every year.
South Side is traveling to North Side on Friday, and while the Hawks don't have as many wins so far this year, they appear to have momentum on their side with a 3-4 overall record.
Unfortunately for the Hawks, all three of their wins have come in non-region play, meaning their 0-2 record in Region 6-4A has to improve soon if they want to make the playoffs.
That's why they hope momentum will come into play.
After suffering through a few close losses over the previous weeks, South Side hosted rival from Hardeman County Bolivar for a non-district game two weeks ago.
The Tigers have scored a lot of points in the past couple years, but the Hawks' defense put that to a stop at least for one night as they won 54-6.
The program probably wished they could've played last week to build on that success, but they had the week off.
Up next is a trip to North Side.
With a record of 4-2 overall and 2-0 in region play, the Indians have become one of the teams to beat in the league - along with Chester County, who's 3-0 in region play and has already beaten South Side.
The idea for the Indians is simple going into this game, simply keep winning and stay at the top of the region standings.
But South Side is beginning to get into the stages of looking at what they have to do and possibly what help they need to get into the playoffs.
If the Hawks were to win this game, they'd be 1-2 in region play. South Gibson and Lexington are playing in Medina. They're both 1-1, meaning the loser will be 1-2.
If Lexington were to be the 1-2 team, they have the tie-breaker advantage over the Hawks because of head-to-head competition.
If Lexington were to beat South Gibson, the Hawks and Hornets are set to meet on Halloween in the final week of the season, which could mean that game is for the fourth spot in the playoffs depending on what happens between now and then.
Brandon Shields, brandon@jacksonpost.news