COFFEYVILLE, Kan. - Although anticipation for Saturday's 7 p.m. game between the No. 7 ranked Northeastern A&M Golden Norsemen and the Coffeyville Community College Red Ravens at Veterans Memorial Stadium has been gaining momentum in both communities, players on both teams view it as just another game.


"Having played at NEO, I'm very much aware of the long and storied history between these two programs," Golden Norse head coach Sherard Poteete said. "But, these kids aren't aware of what's involved because we haven't played a game on the football field since 2004."
This game marks the renewal of the Border Battle between the two programs. While this is the 11th game in the border tussle, NEO has won 25 of the 39 games played since the series began in 1925.
Poteete made his head coaching debut last weekend with a 47-14 victory at Highland, Kan. The win boosted the Norsemen from 14th to seventh in the first weekly National Junior College Athletic Association national poll.
"We're looking at this as our next game on the schedule," Poteete said. "We know we have to go up there and take care of business.
Second year head coach Aaron Flores has been winless through two games thus far. Last weekend the Red Ravens endured a 72-7 drubbing at the hands of Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, Texas.
"A game like this worries me as a coach because Coffeyville has nothing to loose and everything to gain by playing us," Poteete said. "So, we aren't sure whether they'll come out and play their game or throw caution to the wind and come out with something entirely new and different."
One of the areas that Poteete and his staff felt that needed attention this week in preparation for the Ravens were some adjustments in the kicking game.
"We've got to get better in every phase of our kicking game," Poteete said. "We weren't satisfied with our placement of the ball during kickoffs and we just didn't put the ball where we wanted it to be.
"We also had little mishaps on our extra point attempts," Poteete said. "So, we spent a little time this week doing a better job with our kicking game."
Freshman Tyler Cortez (5-11, 155 from Vian) was successful on three straight extra points before having one blocked and missing one wide left. He also failed to reached the endzone on six kickoff attempts as Highland averaged 19.1 yards on seven kickoff returns.
Cortez also missed a 37-yard field goal attempt early in the fourth quarter before being replaced by freshman Dylan Lipps (5-9, 175 from Fairview) who handled two kickoffs and added an extra point.
"We're blessed right now to have two kickers that are very capable of during the job," Poteete said. "Coming out of preseason, we felt that Tyler had won the job, so he got most of the reps going into the game. "But, Dylan deserved a chance to get a couple of chances. so we put him in late to see if he could produce and he did."
Much like the kicking game where two players are getting a shot to produce, Poteete, as offensive coordinator, relied on freshman Tony Kiefer and redshirt sophomore Mitch Manley to operate the Golden Norse offense at quarterback.
Kiefer (5-11, 185 from McAlester) completed 9 of 18 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions. He also added eight yards rushing.
Manley (6-4, 240 from Duncan) contributed 10 yards rushing while completing 9 of 14 passes for 109 yards in less than two quarters of action.
"Another area that we focused on was taking care of the football," Poteete said. "We put the ball on the ground too many times (4) against Highland. When your playing top tier teams, you can't afford to make those kinds of mistakes."
Redshirt sophomore tailback Elliot Hawkins (5-10, 200 from Spiro) led the Norse ground game with 158 yards on only nine carries and two touchdowns.
Sophomore tailback Sheldon Wilson (5-11, 190 from Anadarko) gained 113 yards on 11 carries with one TD.
"If we can run the football as consistently as we did last week, we think we can be successful for a long time," Poteete said. "If we're successful on the ground then we'll be able to keep the defense off balance.
"Coach (Chris) Jirgens did an excellent job of getting our offensive line ready to play," Poteete said. "Anytime you can rush for almost 400 yards, your offensive line is gettin' it done. It wasn't just the running back doing it by themselves."
While the Golden Norse offense generated 641 total yards, defensive coordinator Zach Allen and his staff limited Highland to a mere 349 yards in total offense of which 325 yards were via the pass.
"We're very excited that we only gave up 24 total yards rushing and held them to minus-9 yards on the ground the entire first half," Poteete said. "We knew Highland was going to throw the football because they did the week before.
"Our defense bent and they bent but they never broke," Poteete said. "Not only did they shut down the running game, but when you get six quarterback sacks it's going to be a good night for the defense."
NEO's defense gleaned a touchdown from the Scotties passing game as sophomore strong safety Jakii Moore (6-1, 180 from Tulsa Webster) returned an interception 35 yards midway through the first quarter.
"Even though Coffeyville has had a rough time of it so far, they have played two really good opponents," Poteete said. "In my opinion Trinity Valley (1-1) is one of the best teams in the Southwest Junior College Football Conference and they opened with a loss to No. 13 Hutchinson, Kan.
"Their guys fly around and hit people, but if we come out and take it to them, we should be alright," Poteete said. "We just need to put a little doubt in their minds."
Norse notes: Local fans are invited to participate in a pregame tailgate party starting at 5:30 p.m. on the gravel parking area located north of the stadium. Coffeyville has a $1 parking fee. 
Tickets for the tailgate are $5 person. Sodexo will be providing the tailgate meal which includes barbecue chicken sandwiches, hot dogs, brats, hot links, chips, desserts and a beverage.
Game tickets are $6 for adults and $3 for children and will be available at a gate located near the tailgate area on the north side.