Arnold tries to turn the tables on Bay in 'unique' rematch
High school football teams playing each other twice in one season is hardly unheard of, with playoff rematches between regular season foes a regular occurrence.
A regular season home and home, however? That is fare more rare, though that's what Bay High and Arnold will finish off on Friday at Gavlak Stadium.
The Marlins (2-3) host the Tornadoes (3-2) in a rematch of the Oct. 2 matchup at Tommy Oliver Stadium won by Bay 29-24.
Though it's been less than a full month since the last time the teams' played, Arnold will have a decidedly different look in the rematch due to a mid-season coaching change, with defensive coordinator Shawn Campbell taking over as interim head coach for the past two games after Norris Vaughan's health-related resignation.
Still, it's an unusual situation for both sides.
"Yeah, it's definitely unique, but we're in unique times," Bay coach Keith Bland said. "We lost our first three (scheduled) ballgames of the season and it was the same with Arnold, so we wanted to fill our schedule with another game. Not knowing what we were getting into at the time in August, there were a lot of cancellations and maybe we could've found other games, but we didn't know it at the time.
"But with the unique situation Arnold seems like a completely different team with a new head coach. They changed some players out in different positions, so it is unique playing a team twice, but for us that game was four games ago and in a football season that seems like an eternity ago. They're a different team than the last time we played them."
The Marlins certainly hope they look different in the rematch than they did in the first meeting when they committed four turnovers while forcing none. Campbell said if Arnold is to turn the tables on Bay on Friday, that has to change.
"Obviously the turnovers hurt us," he said. "When you turn it over four times it's never a good night. I don't think I've ever won in a game in my coaching career when we turned it over four times. The main thing Friday is don't turn it over and give ourselves a chance to win. If we don't turn it over like that maybe the outcomes is different (in the first game), but we didn't give ourselves an opportunity."
While Arnold has lost two of three since the first meeting, Bay has won two of three, knocking off Blountstown and Bozeman on the road the last two weeks.
The Tornadoes' offense has kicked into gear, averaging 44 points over the past two games thanks largely to eight total touchdowns from running back CJ Campbell, who is averaging 12.1 yards per carry in his last two outings.
Shawn Campbell said the Tornadoes' senior back has gone to a different level even since the first time the Marlins faced him when he rushed for 121 yards and two touchdowns.
"Oh there's no doubt that he's gotten better," the coach said of CJ Campbell. "He's gotten a lot of confidence and that's huge. Against a back like that, we have to run to the ball and team tackle. You have to eliminate the one on one situations because that's what he's really good at. We have to rally to the football and have good pursuit.
"That's the big thing we have to do a good job of Friday night to slow him down. I don't know if you can really contain him, but we've got to respect him and try to get 11 hats to the football every time they get him the ball."
Bland said the Marlins look a bit different on film than they did in the first meeting, with some different schemes on both defense and offense with offensive coordinator and former Fort Walton Beach coach Phil Dorn taking over the playcalling.
Arnold will also certainly bring a lot of motivation into the game looking to avoid a season sweep at the hands of a county rival, but for a program like Bay that had to struggle to get any wins over the previous three seasons, getting two over Arnold in one season would be deeply satisfying.
"It would be, but it's tough to beat a team twice, especially in a close game," Bland said. "It's a lot of pressure on us. I told our guys that we're used to playing games where the pressure is on the other teams because of where we've been with the program. I feel like now more people are expecting us to win games so we have to go out and play great football.
"It's been a tough situation for (Arnold) going through a coaching change and we would be the perfect remedy for them as far as beating us and getting things back in the direction they want, so that puts a lot of pressure on us."
Shawn Campbell said it has been a difficult transition for the Marlins since Vaughan's resignation, and while a win over Bay would be great, it's not payback that is serving as the team's primary motivation at the moment.
"We're still reeling a bit from the whole situation throughout the year, so it's a day to day process with us trying to believe and continue to strive through some down times and getting better," he said. "It's understanding that everything is a lesson and we've got to move forward and improve every day. That's the biggest part of what we're trying to do now."