The Pike County Bulldogs open the season with a stretch of games against very athletic and competitive teams. Pike County travels to Troy to tangle with Charles Henderson in the Pike County Classic on Friday, then will meet Goshen, Barbour County and Dale County in three consecutive weeks to begin the regular season.

The Bulldogs will use the scrimmage against the Trojans to fine tune their revamped offense and defense, as well as see how they stack up to some of the stiffest competition in the area.

Pike County head coach Fred Holland said that the team is looking forward to the showdown.

“We have plenty of stuff to work on this week to get ready for our first game against Goshen,” Holland said. “We open up with some very athletic teams, and we will see how we measure up on Friday night and see how much farther we need to go. Coach Dean will have his guys ready to go, and we will as well.”

While Dean is entering just his second year of the rivalry between the two schools, Holland had been immersed in it for nearly his entire life.

Holland played in the game during his time in silver and purpler in the 1980’s and has coached in the game for the better part of the last two decades.

The long-time Bulldog said that folks can try to ignore the rivalry, but it will always be there.

“I played in and coached in it, so I know how exciting it is for the kids,” Holland said. “It means a lot to the folks in both towns, because everyone knows each other.”

Terrance Cochran, a senior offensive and defensive lineman for the Bulldogs, grew up watching the game from the stands, and said he is ready to play the Trojans one last time.

“It means a lot to everybody,” said Cochran. “We know those guys well, and have grown up playing against each other in every sport for all our lives. It will be fun to go out there and play them one last time.”

The Bulldogs have not beaten the Trojans since rallying late in the 2008 game to bring home a 13-10 victory.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Troy.