It could be the school’s boundaries that border on each other, or perhaps it is just a shared history of gridiron greatness, but whenever Granite Bay and Del Oro get together there are sure to be fireworks.

Tonight’s battle might be the most anticipated in recent memory, right up there with the two meetings in 2007. Of course, the second of those was a Grizzly blowout (a rarity in this series) in the section title game.

Both teams have sliced through their non-league schedules in impressive fashion and arrived at the front door of Sierra Foothill League play unscathed. While this matchup seems more fitting for the final game of the season, the schedule makers put it right up front, so much is at stake when these two juggernauts run onto the field tonight in Loomis.

You get the feeling that getting a leg up in the league standings is not all that is on the minds of the Grizzlies and Golden Eagles as they prepare. These two schools get a special satisfaction out of playing against, and beating, each other.

“We have been very successful so far, but this is a whole new ballgame,” said Del Oro coach Casey Taylor. “Granite Bay is a different caliber of opponent than any we have seen in the preseason.”

The Grizzlies are a hard-nosed defense and run-oriented team this year, with five backs sharing the duties and sophomore starting quarterback that has been good enough thus far. While its defense has been overwhelming thus far, it has not yet been tested as it will be tonight by a Del Oro offensive unit that tends to post half a hundred points regularly, sometime before intermission.

“We have some playmakers on defense,” said Granite Bay coach Ernie Cooper after a game earlier this season. “Our defensive coaches and players work real hard and come ready to play. During the week, they are over there while we work over here, and we don’t see them a lot, but you can see the results.”

When needed, Grizzly signal caller Brendan Keeney can make big plays through the air, with senior Ian Rhodes able to go get it with the best of them on the receiving end. Granite Bay, however, has a diverse running attack that should play a major role in this one.

Devaunte Bolton has found his big play role more prominently in recent weeks, but Ernie Cooper will likely be happy if his feature back, who splits time with Danny Thomas, his fullback Travis Nicholas and his flyback tandem, Cory Brehm and Matt Kine, methodically move the ball down the field in this contest.

That would keep the Del Oro offense standing in the place where it can do the least damage, behind the white sideline boundary.

When the Golden Eagles do get the offense on the field, Granite Bay defensive leaders Andrew Knapp, Jacob Kludjian, Mike Wade and John Kendall and their mates will have to deal with an explosive multi-dimensional offense.

Bryce Pratt has run for 1,000 yards already this season, in five games, but the Golden Eagles can also throw it around the yard. Junior quarterback Max Magleby replaces his brother under center for Del Oro and he has a trio of fantastic pass catchers to throw to.

Senior Spencer Butterfield is big, strong and fast and is the most lethal of the receiving options, with Freddy Cargile on the other side to keep defenses honest. The Eagles have not done a ton of damage through the air this season, but that may largely be due to the fact that big leads have changed their late-game strategy.

“We want to be balanced on offense,” Taylor said. “Bryce has been excellent the first five games, so when he’s going good and we’re running the ball, we are okay with that. We also feel very comfortable in our passing game.”

With all of the talent at the “skill” positions on the outside, this matchup almost always turns on two things – control of the line of scrimmage and turnovers. The team that hangs onto the ball will almost certainly win the game and both squads take pride in their line play.

“It all starts up front for Granite Bay,” Taylor said. “They are big and strong on offense and defense and they do not miss many tackles. Like us, they give you a lot of different issues to deal with.”

The junior varsity game kicks at 5:30 p.m. tonight, with the varsity scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start. A standing-room-only crowd is expected on both sides of the Del Oro stadium and a great show is anticipated on the field.

“This is the start of our league season,” Cooper said. “This is the game that we spent our off-season preparing for. You love to play games like this.”