PILOT MOUNTAIN — It doesn’t get much bigger than this.

Even without the “long-time rival” part of the equation, Friday night’s Mount Airy (10-0, 6-0) versus East Surry (10-0, 6-0) showdown is the most anticipated game of the 2009 football season.

The winner will have bragging rights and the first Northwest 1A/2A conference regular season title, not to mention a big boost heading into next week’s 1A state playoffs.

Both teams enter into Friday’s matchup undefeated and coming off easy wins.

Last week, Mount Airy breezed by South Stokes 55-7, while East Surry handled North Surry, 55-6.

The game was hyped to the hilt last season, with both teams entering undefeated, but ended in somewhat of a disappointment (at least for East Surry faithful) as the Granite Bears rolled to a lopsided victory on their way to a 1A state title.

While Mount Airy hasn’t steamrolled the competition in the same dominate fashion it did last season, the 2009 Bears are still one of the top teams in the classification and are ranked No. 1 in the North Carolina Associated Press 1A football poll.

Friday will be East Surry’s chance to make up for last season’s slip and solidify themselves as a top tier team. The Cardinals sit at No. 5 in the AP poll and are more than likely fighting for one of the top two seeds in the 1AA Western region bracket.

As far as motivation, both teams’ head coaches, David Diamont at East Surry and Kelly Holder at Mount Airy, said when the Cardinals and Bears meet, there is little any coach needs to say to excite his team, particularly this season, with so much riding on the final game.

For the Bears, Holder said his team sees the Cardinals as one of the toughest opponents they have faced so far this season and have been planning accordingly.

“It’s the conference championship and we know that,” Holder said. “It’s just like a playoff game and we’ve been treating it like that. Whether it be East Surry or somebody else, it’s the conference championship. That’s what makes it meaningful. If you were writing a book or writing a movie, it would be part of the script that two undefeated teams would be playing in the end and it just so happens it’s the case. Doesn’t happen all the time, but you don’t have that problem getting your kids up for a normal regular season game and obviously that helps. But if you were writing it up, this would be the way you would want it.”

As for East Surry, Diamont said he thinks few expected the Cardinals to enter into the final week of the regular season undefeated, a fact which gives his team nothing to lose.

“They are the defending state champ, No. 1 in the state, and we are really not supposed to be here,” Diamont said. “We’ve had a very good season. Our seniors have worked extremely hard and done everything the coaches have asked of them. In our wildest scenario, we never thought we would be in this situation.”

Mount Airy heads into Pilot Mountain Friday looking for its 26th consecutive win. With that much success over the past two seasons, Diamont said flat out, the Bears are a tough team to handle.

“They have no weaknesses,” he said. “When you advance like they did last year (in the playoffs), it means next year’s team almost has a spring practice because it gives you so much time to work with additional people. That’s what you see. The kids that didn’t play much last year that are starters now, they had a big jump-start because of all the practice time and experience and confidence that they gained.”

Diamont acknowledged the Bears have an array of big play threats but said he and his staff see the effectiveness of the Bears’ offensive front as one of their major strengths.

“They have some exceptional athletes, but the folks we are very impressed with is their offensive linemen,” Diamont said. “Coach Price has done an excellent job with them. They are very well drilled, they don’t miss assignments, and when they hit you, they appear to get on you and push you. They know what they are doing.”

On the other side, Mount Airy defensive coordinator Chris Johnson agreed that the Cardinals’ offensive line has been no push over this season. Last week, East’s offensive line paved the way for 406 yards in a 55-6 win over North Surry.

“You don’t get 10-0 without a good offensive line,” Johnson said. “They are a complete football team. Stopping the run is always our first priority, and you’ve got to deal with those guys up front in order to do that.”

East Surry senior Hunter Diamont has been the Cardinals’ offensive stalwart all season, splitting time at both quarterback and running back while also leading the Cardinals’ defense from his linebacker position. Holder said for the Bears to win, they must shut down one of the conference’s most consistent players.

“He’s a really good player, there is no doubt about that,” Holder said. “He can do a lot of things. Defensively, he is a playmaker, and, offensively, he is a playmaker. So you’ve got to be aware of No. 8 is all the time.”

The Bears have their own two-way leader in running back and linebacker Luke Wheeler. Diamont said he thinks Wheeler was one of the best players on Mount Airy’s team last season but that he might not have received the spotlight because of upperclassmen with exceptional careers.

No one has overlooked Wheeler this season, with the senior making a strong case for conference player of the year.

Diamont gave Wheeler superlatives any football player would be happy to take on.

“Quick. Aggressive. Tackles well in the open field. Confident,” Diamont said.

Diamont said the Cardinals know about the likes of offensive playmakers such as Wheeler, Andy Temoney and Justin Collier, but that he thinks the Bears’ junior quarterback Ben Hinson, who replaced three-year starter Aaron Wheeler, is an under-valued threat.

“Folks have got to appreciate the job their quarterback Hinson has done,” Diamont said. “He has been extremely efficient. When they need him to throw, he throws, when they need him to run, he runs. He has filled in a major role for them this year because everyone knows they have all these other weapons, but you have to have somebody there to take the snap.”

Diamont said one of the Bears’ biggest strengths is their special teams game, with kicker/punter Tyler Hull and punt/kickoff returner Justin Collier giving Mount Airy a one-two punch which has the ability to change the face of a game.

“With his (Hull) kickoffs, he puts the opponent in a very difficult situation,” Diamont said. “They have to go 80 yards because he puts it at, or in, the end zone every time. It’s very seldom for a high school team to be able to march 80 yards mistake-free and score. And then with Collier’s punt returns, it puts you at a distinct disadvantage field position wise.”

Unlike East Surry, Mount Airy has had just a few tight games this season. In comparison, the Cardinals have won four games by a touchdown or less to Mount Airy’s one. While big wins are a normal occurrence for the Bears, Holder said he sees the Cardinals’ late game experience and ability to win the tight contests as a definite strength and the mark of a David Diamont football team.

“One thing that his teams do is they win close games,” Holder said. “They’ve done it to us in the past. They have a knack for making plays in the clutch and you have to be really aware of that. They’ve done that this year and their kids believe they can win and they make plays when they have to make them.”

“Our philosophy has been the same all year long,” Diamont said. “We want our kids to play like it’s the last play of their career. Every high school coach strives to get their players to play all out every second. That’s our goal, and that’s how we have approached it. We’ve spent a ton of time this year working with our people to get the best out of them regardless of who is on the other sideline.”

No matter the outcome of this rabid rivalry, the Northwest 1A/2A will be at the center of the area high school football scene Friday and will send two of the strongest 1A teams to the Western regional first round next week.

Contact Thomas Smith at tsmith@mtairynews.com or 719-1920.