By Justin Fedich | The Selma Times-Journal

Selma High School is excited to start the season the way it has started every season in the past decade­—with a win against long-time rival Southside High School. The Panthers are confident and prepared to play the underdog role.

Selma hosts Southside on Friday at 7 p.m. for both teams’ first game of the season. It’s been 10 years since Southside has beat Selma, but that won’t be on either coach’s mind on Friday night.

The Saints have outscored the Panthers 343-40 over the past 10 years, but that doesn’t intimidate Southside head coach Daniel Flowers.

“Nobody thinks that we can beat Selma High,” Flowers said. “The only people that think that we can beat Selma High are these guys in the locker room.”

Last season, Southside stumbled to a 3-7 record and a sixth place finish in the 4A standings. Meanwhile, Selma finished 2014 with a 6-4 record, but still missed the playoffs after finishing fifth in the 6A standings.

Both these teams certainly have more than a long-lasting rivalry on the line.

Selma has won the past couple of years by taking advantage of Southside’s turnovers. Saints’ head coach Leroy Miles believes as long as his team wins the turnover battle on Friday, Selma will havew a great chance to extend the winning streak to 11 games.

“The team that makes the least amount of turnovers is going to be the team that wins the game,” Miles said.

Miles also said avoiding silly penalties and being better on special teams will be the difference in the game.

Miles said the Selma players know that just because history is on their side, it doesn’t mean they’ve already won. The Saints understand they need to come out with just as much, if not more, urgency than the Panthers.

“They do understand that the game has got to be played,” Miles said. “You just don’t win the game because you’re Selma High.”

Flowers has high hopes of making the rivalry less one-sided. He wants to win it for his senior players, who have felt defeat every year Flowers has been head coach.

“I’m still eager to get my first win. I know it’s tough and all, but I’m still very eager to get that first win against them guys,” Flowers said.

While Southside has been more than three touchdowns away from victory in the last seven years, Miles isn’t discounting the challenge that Southside brings.

“Southside is a much improved team and every year, it’s a tough fight,” Miles said. “We’ve been fortunate enough to come out on top and I’m expecting a tough football game.”

No matter how lopsided it’s been over the past decade, Southside still has a blueprint to victory. If the Panthers limit the turnovers and big plays on special teams that have doomed them the past few seasons, the game could be much closer than in past years.

Regardless of the way the game turns out, the pregame hype should be as strong as ever.

“Since I’ve been here, this has been the game everybody has been talking about,” Flowers said. “It’s a rivalry game. To me, it’s crazy.”