The Beginning of a Beautiful Rivalry

It was the American sociologist, Charles Horton Cooley, who said, “The most effective way of utilizing human energy is through an organized rivalry, which by specialization and social control is, at the same time, organized cooperation.”

This Friday, a new rivalry will have its opening chapter written due to the cooperation of Skyline High School (Sammamish, WA) and Oaks Christian High School (Westlake Village, CA). The clash in Sammamish between the home-standing Spartans and the visiting Lions (ESPNU, 9 p.m. Eastern) has the makings of a gridiron classic featuring two squads who have practically forgotten what losing a football game feels like; more importantly, it will feature two signal callers whose careers have the potential to be intertwined for many years to come.

For Skyline quarterback Jake Heaps, the upcoming showdown with Oaks Christian will be another opportunity to show why he is widely considered to be the top high school prospect in the nation. Despite playing less than half an hour from the University of Washington campus, Heaps broke hometown Husky hearts by committing to Brigham Young University this past June. Before heading to Utah to play for the Cougars, though, he will look to hold serve on home turf, on the way to leading Skyline to a third straight state championship.

For Oaks Christian quarterback Nick Montana, the trek north will serve as an official introduction to the fans he will likely be calling his own for the next few years. The son of legendary Hall of Famer Joe Montana shocked the sports world by committing to Washington less than a week after Heaps announced his collegiate relocation. A highly-touted prospect himself, Montana will be looking to show the Husky faithful that he has a lot more than his name going for him and, hopefully, take round one from his quarterback counterpart.

Later rounds were set many months before both quarterbacks made their respective commitments; Washington and BYU are set to face off three times in four years beginning in the 2010 season, when Heaps and Montana will be freshmen. Though only Heaps will have a realistic chance of being on the field for the schools’ first meeting in the sequence—Montana will likely redshirt in 2010, during Jake Locker’s senior year at UW—a possible showdown between the two Jakes of Washington high school football’s past should offer just as much intrigue and only build up the anticipation for another Heaps-Montana confrontation.

If the parallels had not already been stretched far enough by June’s developments, both were invited to the EA Sports Elite11 passing camp this past July and ended up roommates. Amongst a field of some of the top quarterback prospects in the nation, Heaps took the MVP award—Montana finished fourth in the balloting—and both laid claim to three other individual honors: Heaps won “Most Likely to Play Early,” “Best Leader Vocally,” and “Highest Football IQ,” while Montana walked away with “Best Leader by Example,” “Best in Any System,” and “Most Improved.”

The Oaks Christian-Skyline contest this Friday will be more than a game between two powerhouses; it will offer a simultaneous glimpse into two bright futures that will cross paths for the first—but likely not the last—time. No matter the result, the groundwork will have been laid for a different kind of Husky-Cougar rivalry—one built on parity, affiliation, and maybe even destiny.