By Andy Walter

SMYRNA — Mike Judy knows that the two quarterbacks are the marquee players.

Considering the college offers that both Middletown High’s Jaden Davis and Smyrna’s Cameron Edge have received, Friday night’s game might be a showdown between two of the highest-recruited QBs the state has ever seen.

But Judy, the Eagles’ coach, also knows it will take a lot more than just two players to decide the Harvest Bowl, which is slated for 7 p.m. at Smyrna.

“Both of these quarterbacks are great,” said Judy. “They’re both high-level players.

“But this game isn’t just about the stars — the guys that are highly recruited. It’s about the kids who you might be hearing their names for the first time as a fan of these programs. That’s where this game is won or lost. The good players are going to do their thing. They always do and they always will.

“But it’s going to come down to those other guys — the guys that people still mispronounce their names. That’s OK. This is going to be somebody’s coming-out party.”

Both the Eagles (1-1) and the Cavaliers (1-0) have grown accustomed to playing big games against each other. Smyrna beat Middletown in both the 2016 and ‘17 DIAA Division I state finals but the Cavs have won the last three meetings.

That includes a Middletown win in the 2019 state semifinals.

The two teams didn’t play last season after schedule was shortened by the pandemic.

It will be the first head-to-head meeting between Davis, a senior who is verbally committed to South Carolina, and Edge, a junior who spent his first two seasons at Washington, D.C.’s DeMatha Catholic.

Regardless of who wins tonight, though, both squads will still be considered top contenders to win the first state crown in the newly-formed Class 3A. All 11 Class 3A teams are guaranteed a state tournament berth this fall.

Judy said he likes that the players get to be involved in a big game like this.

“It’s a great game between two good programs,” he said. “It’s really important to, obviously, all the players and coaches but also to the towns. It makes it that much more intense of a game. We really look forward to that.

“Both teams look really good on film. It should definitely be an interesting game to see how it plays out and it also should be pretty entertaining to watch.”

Middletown has really played only a half of a regulation game so far this season. The Cavaliers were leading Meade, Md., 32-6, in their opener last Friday when the visitors opted to stop the game with 3:52 left in the second quarter after one of their players was injured.

After getting dumped by nationally-ranked Bergen Catholic, New Jersey, 52-6, two weeks ago, Smyrna bounced back to dump Arundel, Maryland, 56-6, last Friday.

While the Eagles’ defense is still a work in progress, Judy said the Bergen Catholic game was a good learning experience.

“We have a lot of potential and they’re getting better all the time,” he said about the defense. “You can’t use the scoreboard at Bergen as a measuring stick. What a great team does is, they expose the flaws that you have.

“It’s like a pop quiz before the big test. ... Man, you learn a lot of what you need to work on. We should be a better version of ourselves since week one.”

Of course, with the way the Class 3A schedule is set up, there shouldn’t be any easy games this season. Both Middletown and Smyrna still have to play Salesianum, which looks like another top contender in the division.

Judy said there’s always a danger in making too much out of one big game, like the Harvest Bowl.

“The big mistake is for the teams to make this the Super Bowl,” he said. “If you’re the winner or the loser, you’ve still got seven, eight, nine games to play. You have to temper this game.

“It is very, very important and we want that (Harvest Bowl) trophy. But you have to do it in a manner that’s going to allow you to grow. It’s going to be a highly-emotional game for both teams. The team that can be the most sound, make the least amount of mistakes and stay focused on the end goal is the one that will come out victorious.”

Schedule changes

Changes continue to be made to this season’s high school football schedule.

Dover’s home game with Cape Henlopen, originally slated for next Friday, will now be played on Thursday at 5 p.m.

Smyrna is also hosting Caesar Rodney on Thursday at 7 p.m. because of a shortage of referees in the state.

CR’s home game with Dover had already been moved to 11 a.m. on Oct. 2. The Senators, who play at St. Georges on Saturday at noon, will go three weeks without playing on a Friday night.