COVETED JUG — Fairmont activities director and head football coach Mat Mahoney works on scheduling events in his office at Fairmont High School on Monday. Mahoney’s Cardinals will put the Little Brown Jug (background) on the line when they play the Blue Earth Area Bucs at 7 p.m. Wednesday night at Wilson Field in Blue Earth. (Photo by Charlie Sorrells)

FAIRMONT — Fairmont head football coach Mat Mahoney probably felt like an archaeologist excavating a historical treasure when he removed the Little Brown Jug from the high school’s trophy case this week.

Unfortunately, the coveted corked crock has not seen the light of day since the 2018 season-opener when the Cardinals posted a 41-12 victory over the Blue Earth Area Bucs on Aug. 30 at Wilson Field in Blue Earth.

The two-year hiatus in the long-running series was created when the Minnesota State High School League made the switch from conference to district play, leaving the once intense rivalry game in the rubble.

“It’s nice to renew the historical game this fall, but it’s a different scenario than in years past,” Blue Earth Area mentor Randy Kuechenmeister said in reference to Wednesday’s final regular-season kickoff against Fairmont at 7 p.m. at Wilson Field. “The two schools are no longer in the same class, same section or even the same district in the sport of football, so there’s no direct impact from that standpoint.

“It is, however, difficult to tell exactly what the implications this game will have on the upcoming playoffs. Truthfully, I don’t know if it will affect how the QRF ranks us or not.”

The Class AA No. 8-ranked Bucs (6-1) currently hold the No. 3 spot in the Section 2 postseason rankings, with unbeaten and No. 1-ranked Blooming Prairie and No. 9-ranked Maple River directly in front of them. Maple River defeated Blue Earth Area during Week 6 to hold the edge in the head-to-head tiebreaking criteria.

Across the gridiron, Class AAA No. 2-ranked Fairmont (7-0) wants to leave no margin for error in the QRF’s statistical formula for determining the No. 1 seed in the Section 3 playoff bracket.

“We’re not taking any chances and are going into this week’s game with the mindset that we need to win in order to get the No. 1 seed, and more importantly, a first-round bye,” said Mahoney.

Fairmont currently holds a one-game lead over No. 10-ranked Waseca (6-1) in the sectional race, but only a narrow 86.2-74.7 differential in the QRF in Class AAA.

The Cardinals, who are No. 2 in the QRF to the Bluejays’ No. 5 position, however, defeated their sectional rival head-to-head during Week 4.

“I always look forward to the jug game because of its rich history, but I’m feeling better now that we’re somewhat healthy again right before the playoffs,” said Mahoney, who got senior quarterback Zach Jorgensen back last Friday night after missing the previous two games with an injury.

Jorgensen showed no signs of rust by throwing for 180 yards and four touchdowns in a 28-18 South Central White District win over Luverne. Eli Anderson caught six passes for 118 yards and two TDs, while James Johnson chalked up 121 yards on 27 carries during the 10-point victory.

“It’s good to pencil Gavin Rodning, Sawyer Tordsen and David Barrientos back into the starting lineup, but you’ve got to give credit to our guys who really stepped it up with those players out due to injuries,” said Mahoney. “Brendan Schmidtke did a good job when Jorgy went out, James Johnson did likewise in the backfield running the football, while Hank (Artz) and (Tyson) Kube really did a great job in switching from skill spots to the line last week.

“It’s good to know if we need to plug those guys into the lineup again, they can get the job done.”

Now the next task at hand for Mahoney’s Cardinals will be Kuechenmeister’s Bucs at Wilson Field at 7 p.m. Wednesday night.

“Their offense revolves around (quarterback) Adam Schavey, and he’s a tough, talented all-around good football player,” said Mahoney.

Schavey rushed for 173 of the Bucs’ incredible 605 total yards of offense en route to four TDs on the ground, while passing for 63 more and a score to 6-foot-5, 225-pound junior receiver Ashton Lloyd during a 61-20 rout over Central of Norwood Young America last Friday night.

“Lloyd has a big athletic body and he’ll definitely be an offensive threat to keep an eye on,” said Mahoney.

But Schavey and Lloyd were not alone as Parker Meyers ran for 92 yards and one TD, while Noah Johnson supplied two scores and 54 more yards on the ground in the 41-point triumph.

“Kuech’s defense swarms to the football and tackles well, so it’ll be a challenge this week,” said Mahoney.

“Fairmont’s a quality team, well-coached and possesses a lot of speed,” said Kuechenmeister. “They’re talented at the skill positions, and big on both sides of the line, so they can move bodies.

“Their defense makes plays and their offense moves the sticks without needing a lot of time, so that’ll be our challenge on Wednesday night.”

Fairmont holds a 47-15 edge in the previous 64 Little Brown Jug meetings to go with ties in 1957 and 1963.