For those who love comparative scores, Fridley’s much-anticipated Friday showdown with Minneapolis North is a number cruncher’s dream. Why? In an interesting circumstance, both teams have played four games — each against the same opponents.
That’s right, North and Fridley have defeated (in different orders, of course) St. Anthony, Providence Academy, Mound Westonka and SMB, a co-op of St. Paul Academy, Minnehaha Academy and Blake, en route to perfect records. That math, in a nutshell, tells us that both North (4-0, 4-0) and Fridley (4-0, 4-0) are good, really good. North, ranked No. 2 in the Class 2A Associated Press statewide poll from Oct. 28, has outscored its opponents 165-67. Fridley has a 106-12 advantage.
Fridley’s defense, led by the likes of Christian Crockett, Josh Franklin and Micah Niewald, shut out high-powered SMB 14-0 to start the season (North won a 38-33 shootout over SMB last Friday) to set the tone for what has been a dominant season. The No. 4-4A Tigers’ offense, meanwhile, is led by dual-threat quarterback Tra’Vione Stevenson, who had three rushing touchdowns and a passing TD last week in a 34-3 rout over Mound Westonka.
Minneapolis North, which has appeared in the last six state tournaments and has won 57 consecutive regular-season games, features two seniors who were Star Tribune preseason All-Metro dream team picks in quarterback Zach Yeager (committed to North Carolina A&T) and running back Terrance Kamara. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Yeager ranks third in the state with 988 passing yards. Kamara is third in the state in rushing yards with 801. The two combine for 25 touchdowns scored this season.