Patrick Carr, Standard-Examiner

BRIGHAM CITY — History follows Box Elder into the third week of season as the 130-year-old high school prepares for its 1,000th football contest Friday against rival Bear River.

It’s only circumstance the Bees (1-1) and Bears (0-2), who form the state’s longest-running prep football rivalry, will meet for such a milestone during the 104th edition of the Golden Spike game (Box Elder leads the series 74-27-2).

Of course, Box Elder will look substantially different — with far more in the way of pads and helmets and other logical safety precautions — than the C. O. Roskelley-led team that fell to Utah State’s freshman team (then known as Utah Agriculture College) 35-0 in the program’s first-ever contest played on Nov. 3, 1917, in Logan.

Box Elder, according to prep football historian George Felt, is the sixth high school in Utah to reach 1,000 total games (Ogden, Davis, West, East, Jordan).

That same history includes senior Tyeson Hansen, who’s gearing up for his final trip to Bear River on Friday. It’s a game his brother, Cameron, and father, Daniel, both know all too well. Hansen’s uncle, Mason Tye, played football at Weber State in the late 2010s.

Photo Supplied, Box Elder High School

“We’ve got two talented teams, honestly,” Hansen said. “Something we have to prove with our offense is just our passing game… We’ve got a quarterback back there (Carter Buchanan) who can sling the rock and we all trust him. … I expect a few more throws coming from him this weekend.”

Hansen acknowledged that this 0-2 Bears team has some weapons of their own, specifically two-way player Tydon Jones (FB/ILB), who currently holds a team-high 113 rushing yards. Last time around, the Bees held Jones to just 26 yards on the ground.

“(Jones) has been a wrecking force on that defense and offense,” Hansen said. “I’m looking forward to playing him. … We’re definitely excited to see what this matchup looks like against him as we’ve been watching film.”

Up the road, Bear River more than shares the sentiment of the Golden Spike. The Bears haven’t claimed the rivalry’s bragging rights in three seasons, dropping last year’s meeting 49-28 on their home turf.

Senior Kash Avery has known about the rivalry since his junior high days watching the bigger, stronger Bears from the stands. As freshmen, Avery and Max Anderson befriended Box Elder seniors Tyeson Hansen and Cody Kaleikini during a choir field trip to Garland.

Sure enough, Hansen, up to 178 rushing yards through Week 2, and Kaleikini, a key fixture at guard, showed up during film sessions this week.

“It’s hard to put into words because even if your whole season went horribly, it’s like ‘you’ve got the spike,'” Avery said. “That’s one of the most important trophies. … No matter what, you can hold onto that, we beat Box Elder, we’ve got their number and it’s that way until you play again.”

Both squads enter Friday with similar priorities regarding Tydon Jones and pushing more from each other’s gunslingers, but what matters the most for the Bees and Bears is the win column heading into their respective region schedules.

Bear River opened the season with two close defeats at 5A Cedar Valley (36-30) and at home to 4A foe Cedar (34-28). Likewise, Box Elder is coming into Garland after a narrow 15-14 loss at Mountain Crest.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Friday at Bear River High School.

Connect with prep sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net and X @ctbecker.