By Donald Heath
Special for the Effingham Herald
SPRINGFIELD – As a former college basketball player, Jake Darling learned success came when the swirling events around him began to slow down on the court.
Darling, now in his third year as Effingham County High School’s athletic director, expects similar success during his busiest Friday night when cross-county rival South Effingham comes to town.
The Rebels-Mustangs annual football game often draws a capacity crowd of 8,000 – maybe four or five times bigger than an average football game.
More people mean more excitement – also more complications.
“It’s a big event, a big production, and a lot will be going on, but I just feel like everything will go a little slower because I know what to expect,” Darling said.
Darling was only a few months into his new job as athletic director in 2022 when he tackled his first ECHS-SEHS football game.
In 1996, South Effingham was formed from a split of Effingham County High School as the county began to grow. Athletics formed intense rivalries. You’re either a Rebel or a Mustang – nothing in between.
And school support hits a zenith for this football game as fan bases make their annual pilgrimages. Darling will open gates at 5:30 pm – 30 minutes early – to overcome fans slowly making their way through the recently erected metal detectors.
He brought in extra bleachers for additional seating. The old middle school will be used for auxiliary parking with four buses shuttling fans to and from the game.
Additional lights will be added in the parking lot to help fans get around some of the construction still going on.
Additional law enforcement will direct traffic on the street.
The game will be televised by Savannah’s NBC affiliate WSAV as its Game of the Week.
“All the local businesses want to be a part of (this game), but only corporate sponsors will have tents,” Darling said.
Students will play big parts of the week’s festivities. Chick-fil-A will hold a chicken nugget challenge with a $1,000 prize for the school that buys the most chicken nuggets on its designated day – SEHS on Monday, Sept. 16; ECHS on Tuesday, Sept. 17.
At halftime, each school will have a student competing to kick the longest field goal.
The schools’ bands are always front and center. They’ll march into the stadium together and play the national anthem. At halftime, the bands will put on a combined show.
At the end of the game, the Josh Reddick Foundation trophy will be presented to the winning team.
Darling still doesn’t mind telling about his faux pas when handing the trophy to ECHS coach John Ford. Foundation chief financial officer and school board member Jan Landing was supposed to present the award.
Of course, that night was a blur from the start as the school named the field after former coach Bob Griffith.
“There’s no instruction manual for a lot of the things I have to do,” Darling said.
