Friday night is a tale of two football programs going in different directions. 

One program was playing Maryville in the playoff semifinals eight years ago, and one program was going 3-7 that year. The Stars of Siegel have burned out and have started 0-5 this year. The Pioneers are shining bright and are 5-0. 

The Pioneers are on a mission to make history with each game, and this week is no exception. The Pioneers are a long way from being 3-7, but make no mistake, this game is not an automatic win.

A win tonight would be monumental – win No. 6 for the Pioneers – and it would guarantee the team its first winning season since 1990.

The head coach for Siegel is Adam Renshaw, who spent the past eight seasons as an assistant at Cleveland. Renshaw grew up in Lexington, Tenn., and he was a center on his high school football team. Coach Renshaw took the Siegel job in January and because of COVID-19, he was not able to have spring practice.

Renshaw did not have the opportunity to evaluate talent and install his system with preseason scrimmages.

Siegel runs a traditional spread offense with one tailback and three wide receivers. Their quarterback is No. 14 Jack Brewer. Their best running back is No. 3, Kendell Martin. Siegel has plenty of size on the line with players such as No. 58 Jacob Cauthron who is 6 feet tall and 290 pounds, and No. 76 Karter Johnson who is 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds. 

Siegel runs a 3-4 defense, which Warren County has seen before this season. When coach Renshaw was asked what his strategy was going to be on defense against C.J. Taylor, Renshaw had one answer. Coach Renshaw exclaimed, “TACKLE HIM!” 

Tackling C.J. Taylor has not been easy for anyone this season. Warren County enters the game behind the 924 rushing yards and 13 rushing TDs of C.J.

Siegel comes into the game with their No. 1 running back and No. 1 quarterback injured. Siegel’s total offensive yards through its first five games is 1,179 yards, which is only 255 yards more than C.J. has gained on the ground.

WCHS head coach Matt Turner keeps saying the Pioneers are 0-0. Coach Turner said, “We learned our lesson at Cannon County last year.” 

Turner and the entire staff and team appear to have bought into the mentality they are proving themselves each week. Nobody thought they would be 5-0 and tied for No. 1 in their region. The team is convinced that until they beat everyone, no one will respect Warren County football.

Coach Turner and his team are vividly aware of the historical ramifications of this game. Warren County high school football has not had a winning season in 29 years. The last team with a winning record was in 1990. That Pioneer football team was 8-3, with a win in the Nurseryman’s Bowl over Crossville to end the season. Ray Barnes was the head coach.  Vanilla Ice had the No. 1 hit in the country with “Ice, Ice, Baby.” Yes, that was a long time ago.

But this is now and #Squad52, as coach Turner calls them, wants to be the team to break the losing season streak. Every starter and every player on the varsity squad wants to win this week. 

The Pioneers may be banged up from five straight victories, including a battle to the last second against Blackman last week. But when you are making history, the desire to win overrides everything. Ask The Syrup Squad, the starting five offensive linemen, what this game means to them. To a man, they want to win tonight and remain undefeated.

Friday night lights at Siegel … the stars may be aligned the right way for the Pioneers. When one looks up at the sky Friday night, the stars may not be visible. The real stars may very well be the Warren County football team.