A lot is on the line Friday night when Bob Jones travels to Sparkman Field in Harvest to meet the Senators in a 7 o’clock Class 7A, Region 4 football game.

Both teams are 2-2 in region play – along with James Clemens – and a game out of second place with Florence and Huntsville.

Both are coming off losses last week, the 3-3 Patriots fell 38-35 to Florence after rallying from a 28-0 first-quarter deficit, and 4-2 Sparkman lost 41-17 to James Clemens after surrendering no more than 24 points in a single game all season.

The two are longtime rivals, probably the biggest before Madison City Schools added James Clemens to the mix 11 years ago.

And then there is the brother vs. brother angle – that neither enjoys very much – for the head coaches as Sparkman’s Laron White tries to even his record against younger sibling Kelvis White. The sons of Alabama High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame coach Louis White have split since Kelvis took over at Bob Jones. Big brother and the Senators won 31-0 in 2020 and Bob Jones won 25-21 last season. In 2016, Kelvis’ Mae Jemison team beat Laron’s Tanner squad 48-28.

“We don’t even mention it,” Laron said of the game as a topic of conversation at family gatherings. “We’re a close family. My brother and I are so close we hate to play each other. We don’t talk about the [rivalry]. But, we are competitive.”

Kelvis does recognize the importance of the 50th Bob Jones-Sparkman game.

“This is 100 percent a big rivalry,” Kelvis said, “especially for the Madison people who remember before James Clemens came in. This was ‘the’ rivalry. Our kids grew up playing against Sparkman Middle School and Monrovia Middle. There are some friendships, too.

“With my brother on the other side of the field, it makes it even more. They know I want to get this one, too. I don’t talk about it much, but they know that.”

Standout Sparkman middle linebacker Malachi Jones was succinct in his analysis of the rivalry: “It’s Coach going against his brother.”

For this one week, the brothers do take a little break from normal.

“We talk three or four times a week, just bouncing ideas off each other,” Kelvis said. “This week, I have to be careful not to talk as much. We hate to have to play each other. Really, I hate it for our parents and family.”

The Senators, who had three shutouts this season and had allowed only 33 points before last week, rely on Jones to anchor the never-say-die defense. The 5-foot-10, 210-pound senior is averaging 17 tackles a game with 102 total stops. He has 27 solo tackles and 18 for a loss.

“He might be the leading tackler in the state,” Laron said. “If not, he’s close to the top. He’s a football player, man. He has a high motor. He’s always smiling, always laughing and having a good time. He’s undersized, but I love guys who put everything they’ve got into it. That’s what makes him special.

“He’s like those guys in the NFL who play for 12, 13 years making plays on special teams. He will run and hit and do everything you like in a football player. That’s Malachi.”

Jones said he’s playing better than he did as a junior and he’s proud of his defense’s performance. “I feel like we’ve gone through adversity and improved as we go,” he said. “We’re working hard.

“I’m more of a sideline-to-sideline linebacker. In either the run or pass game, I’m going to follow as fast as I can. I always hustle, no matter how tired I might be. I think that’s come from maturity and me loving football even more. I want to do more for the team.”

Jones said fellow inside linebacker Y’ves Ponder (5-11, 210-pound junior), outside linebacker/safety Kamarion Starks (6-0, 190-pound senior) and cornerback Justin Caudle (5-8, 170-pound senior) are also leaders on defense, along with Huntsville transfer DB Jalyn Chambers (6-0, 175-pound junior).

Bob Jones’ White said that Jones is key for the Senators’ defense. “That No. 10 [Jones] is the leader of the group,” he said. “He flies around and is really active. You have to know where he is every play.”

To succeed this week, the Sparkman defense will have to slow down quarterback Ray Hardy. The 2021 All-State pick as an athlete has thrown for 627 yards and rushed for 823 this season.

“They’ve got another explosive offense,” Laron said, “and their quarterback makes them go. Nobody has shut him down yet. It’s more like ‘try to slow him down.’ There are so many things he can do. We’ll have to defend the whole field.”

Bob Jones will be facing Sparkman’s junior quarterback Josh Ward, who has already passed for more than 1,100 yards, and junior running backs Jay’quel Coleman and Jayden “Drip” Thomas, who each have more than 300 yards on the ground.