High School Rivalry Games

 

The two rural Missouri towns are huge rivals, 20 miles apart. Although the local leaders will tell you different, the rivalry is edgy.

A true fan must love rivalry games. Sports should not become routine. It should be about passion, always. However, the relationship between two good high basketball programs, like Monroe City and Palmyra, who are year after year bitter rivals is one of complexity. School administrators are on constant vigil knowing they are one misstep away from bad blood spilling over into the educational process. That cannot happen.

Civic leaders in the communities of Monroe City and Palmyra claim the competitive climate between the two neither generates nor harbor any bitterness. The two sides support each other, often as economic and social allies. Marriages between a MC grad and a PHS grad are common. Two years ago, when popular Monroe City coach Jamar White died in a traffic accident, the show of support for MC from the Palmyra school and community was overwhelming and heartfelt.

However, don't kid yourself. Bottom line, they really don't like each other.

Often troubled former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson once announced at a post-fight press conference, after losing his crown to Lennox Lewis, that it was time for him to “fade into Bolivian.” Tyson’s most famous quote, though, was when he told the world how he fueled his pre-fight rage, “I’m just ferocious. I want your heart. I want to eat your children.”

There are no cannibalistic intentions on either side of this local rivalry, at least not one that was ever prosecuted. Still, one can sense neither side would hesitate to grab the last piece of barbeque at the company picnic, leaving the other standing in line with an empty plate.