VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (WTKR)- The games always seem to be close, but since 2022 the scales have tipped towards Frank Cox in the Falcons' annual showdown with Salem.
"He and I got the job at the same time," said Cox head coach Tyler Noe of Salem head coach Mark Hall. "It was four years ago so it's been a great rivalry. We have a good friendship, but there's always that one week that neither one of us want the other to win."
"You always want to beat somebody you haven't beaten before," Hall added, as he has yet to top the Falcons during his Salem tenure. "It's definitely something that's under my skin a little bit but definitely looking forward to it this week."
It will be a showdown on Shorehaven Drive between the two Beach District rivals. Cox brings its run-first offense that has served it well to this point, while the Sun Devils look to play a physical brand of football that will lead them to the win.
"Their run game," Salem senior quarterback Landen Curles said of Cox. "Everybody knows Cox can run the ball so it's going to be about containing their running back and just limiting those big plays."
"I think they have a great plan," pointed out Falcon senior wide receiver Alex Neff. "They run the ball well, they pass the ball and their quarterback is really good. I just think they've got a great team."
Frank Cox brings a 4-1 record into the contest, while Salem has won three of its first four games. Both squads' lone loss came to Green Run, though both held their own and put themselves in good position before the Stallions pulled away down the stretch. While a defeat is never a desired outcome, each team feels it learned valuable lessons from their respective defeats.
"That one really hurt," Neff recalled. "I thought we had it and then we just let go at the end. We've really just got to keep pushing, even towards the end. After that first touchdown, we thought that we had the momentum."
"I feel like we learned a lot about each of our teammates," added Curles from the Salem perspective. "Everybody learned a lot about each other, just reflecting, looking yourself in the mirror and just like 'what can I do better?'"
The Sun Devils and Falcons could potentially see Green Run again in the playoffs, but right now both are focused solely on Friday's showdown, which promises to have big postseason implications of its own in Region 5A.
"There could be quite a few 7-3 teams," noted Noe. "As long as we keep winning and doing what we know, go one week at a time, go 1-0 every week, we think we could really set ourselves up for good playoff positioning."
"I try not to look at the seeding in the region right now, but it's kind of hard not to see that this will be a placement game in the region for playoffs," Hall said.
A lot is on the line in this midseason meeting. The two district foes will kick off Friday night with Salem looking to turn the tide and the Falcons hoping to continue soaring in the series.
"I feel like it would get something off our back," said Curles. "They have that over us and I don't enjoy that."
"That would be awesome," Neff countered. "If we win this game, it will make my month."
"It would be gigantic going into our bye week next week 5-1 with a win streak going on," said Noe.
"It means a lot," Hall added. "Just going 1-0 each week. It's a lot for the guys and they're just looking forward to winning each week."
Frank Cox and Salem kick off Friday at 7 p.m. in our Friday Night RedZone Game of the Week.
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