Prior to Friday evening’s matchup between Maryville and Savannah, the Spoofhounds had kept the Highway 71 trophy inside the city limits of Maryville for nine consecutive years.
The last time Savannah claimed the rights to the rivalry’s treasured possession happened in 2011, when the Savages were able to defend their home turf and beat the Spoofhounds 21-14.
That’ll remain the last time Savannah was able to win, too, as Maryville coasted to a 42-0 victory Friday night at the Hound Pound.
“We always want to win, but especially that game. You know, we never want to lose to Savannah,” Maryville junior running back Caden Stoecklein said. “We always want to keep the Highway 71 trophy, and Coach Webb said it’s a matter of time before we have to put our scores on the back because we’re gonna win so much.”
The Spoofhounds weren’t slow in letting the spectators at their home stadium know they wanted to keep the now-11-game win streak against Savannah alive.
After receiving the opening kickoff, Maryville’s offense went to work, pounding the ball through the line of scrimmage and the Savages’ defensive front. The Spoofhounds (4-4, 4-1 MEC) didn’t attempt a single pass on the game’s initial drive. But it didn’t matter, because junior running back Cooper Loe was able to find the end zone from 3 yards away to give Maryville a 7-0 lead with 6:56 left in the first quarter.
“Our offensive coordinator says he doesn’t care if they know our plays, we’re still gonna shove it right down their throat,” Loe said. “So, I think it’s great. I mean, they know our offense pretty well, but we’re still just gonna keep pushing it down their throat.”
On Savannah’s first drive of the game, a fourth-and-18 forced the Savages (3-5) to punt. It was unsuccessful as Maryville blocked it and set up its offense on the Savannah 20.
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