East Ridge vs. Cretin-Derham Hall a big, star-studded game

Every Friday night, there are big high school football games. Once in a while, however, big doesn't quite cover it.

The Class 6A matchup pitting East Ridge vs. Cretin-Derham Hall is just such a game.

On one side is No. 6 East Ridge, the suburban upstart with second-to-none facilities and a rapid rise to excellence. Last year, the Raptors produced the first Minnesotan to be recruited by Alabama in more than 80 years in J.C. Hassenauer.

On the other is No. 10 Cretin-Derham Hall, a storied private school in St. Paul with 100 years of athletic history and an alumni list that includes such names as Molitor, Birk, Floyd and Mauer.

What gives this game even more heft is a meeting of two of the most highly recruited players to come out of Minnesota in years: Cretin-Derham Hall defensive end Jashon Cornell and East Ridge quarterback Seth Green.

The game has star power, battle lines have been drawn and feelings run strong..

"I can't wait," said Cornell, a 6-4, 260-pound senior defensive end, who ended months of college speculation — and broke more than a few hearts among Gopher fans — when he announced his commitment to Ohio State in July. "I think East Ridge is our biggest rival."

On Friday night, fans at the same University of St. Thomas field will see him line up across from Green, a 6-4, 210-pound junior who has college coaches across the nation wearing out game tape. Green already has nine Division 1 offers, five from Big Ten teams including Minnesota and another from Oregon..

To high school kids, the idea of historical perspective rarely dates back past lunchtime. So it's easy to forgive Cornell's assessment that a program in just its sixth year in existence is the most hated foe for a school that probably has gum on the bottom of desks older than that.

"I'm not sure how we can be their biggest rival," East Ridge coach Mike Pendino said. "We've never beaten them."

But Cornell's reasoning is sound. Both play in the Suburban East Conference. Both harbor legitimate state title hopes, buoyed by talent-rich rosters. Many of the players know each other well, the result of offseason camps and combines.

Cornell and Green became close friends last summer, attending some of those camps together. They were even roommates at one camp, where each got to know the other's strengths well.

Having made his college choice, Cornell says he's been much more relaxed this year, willing to enjoy his final season without the added pressure of trying to make a college choice.

"He's more comfortable," Cretin-Derham Hall coach Mike Scanlan said. "He doesn't feel like he has to impress. He can just play and he will impress. I don't know that he was trying to impress anyone last year, but it just came with the territory of being the No. 1 recruit in the country."

With his future set, Cornell is happy to be able to focus on the season ahead.

"At home, I've got a of goals I want to accomplish this year," he said. "I want to get 24 sacks, win a state championship and win Mr. Football. I think I can get those. I don't have to worry about recruiting anymore."

While Cornell is spending the fall honing his skills as the nation's most dynamic pass rusher, Green is just starting to show glimpses of what makes recruiters ga-ga.

He was in the Raptors' opener, completing 17 of 30 passes for 235 yards and three touchdowns in a 49-0 rout of Park of Cottage Grove.

"As you grow up, you live and learn," Green said. "I feel like I've grown a lot mentally. I've put in the work watching film. I'm at a higher level mentally."

Off the field they may see each other as brothers, but on the field Friday both expect a sibling rivalry to emerge. Cornell, who didn't play against East Ridge in 2013 due to concussion-like symptoms, is itching to get the chance to add Green to his sack list.

"This is special," Cornell said. "I feel like this is payback since I didn't get to play him last year.

As the Raptors' most visible leader, Green tried to downplay the individual matchup, but the faint smile gave him away even as his words remained low-key.