Cole Williams never got to play in what was dubbed the “Ripon Rivalry Bowl.”

The 2005 Ripon High graduate just missed out, as the first football game against neighboring Ripon Christian took place in 2006. He did get to take part as an assistant coach starting in 2008.

Williams, now a social studies teacher at RHS, has been part of the staff ever since, and he’ll lead his alma mater as interim head coach Friday when the Indians and Knights rekindle their grid-iron rivalry at Ripon Christian.

“It’s exciting,” Williams said of this anticipated reunion. “They’re a much different program than they were back then. It’s not even the same conversation. That’s a program with a good history of success in the Southern League, and Coach (Phil) Grams has them dialed in.”

It will be Williams’ first game as the man in charge of the program after longtime coach Chris Musseman stepped down on Monday.

The rivalry was lopsided in its previous phase, with Ripon winning all eight and by large margins. In fact, the most competitive game was the last, with the Indians rolling 56-26 in the non-league affair on Sept. 13, 2013. Ripon Christian recovered from the loss and made its first Sac-Joaquin Section title-round appearance that year, falling to Bradshaw Christian in the Division VI final.

Both programs went on to achieve much success since that last encounter, and the two schools’ rivalry raged on in other sports, namely basketball and volleyball.

“It’s definitely a school rivalry in all other sports, but to me, it’s not a rivalry in football, yet,” Grams said. “We’re going to have to win one first before it’s a rivalry.”

Now that his Knights are back in the Trans-Valley League as full-time members — they were previously in the Southern League in all sports except for basketball — there will be plenty of opportunities ahead for these schools to get reacquainted.

For now, it’s a pivotal game for two injury-ravaged teams clinging onto their postseason hopes with no cakewalks on what remains of a ruthless TVL schedule.

Both teams have had two of their top two-way starters go down with season-ending knee injuries — Brett Shaw for Ripon, Trevor Van Elderen for Ripon Christian — but have others making comebacks.

All-TVL first-team cornerback Dru Orlando (back) and running back/linebacker Anden Ries (knee) made their season debuts for Ripon last Friday in a 10-7 loss at Orestimba but played sparingly after missing a full offseason of workouts.

Williams has described the season as a “roller coaster” but said the team’s fighting spirit has not been extinguished despite enduring its third three-point loss of the season, constant lineup changes and the sudden departure of its head coach.

“Every game has been real close,” Williams said. “Our record doesn’t necessarily reflect who we are as a team. If you look at our losses we’ve had, they’ve all been real close, and if a couple plays go a different way, we’d have a different outcome. We haven’t been on the right end of that yet. We’re hoping to shore thing sup and stop hurting ourselves with penalties and untimely mistakes.”

Ripon Christian’s numbers have dwindled in the last month. The team started the season with a 24-man roster but was down to 17 by the end of its game at Modesto Christian last Friday. The Knights vanquished MC 50-0, and with its opponent having an even tougher time with low numbers and injuries the two teams agreed to end the non-league tilt in the third quarter.

The good news is that flyback/cornerback Carson Cho (collarbone) is back after missing three games, while standout receiver/safety Amos Cady (ankle) has returned to practice after getting hurt early in the Knights’ 28-21 loss to Hughson two weeks ago.

“We’re always concerned with depth,” Grams said. “They have a 45-man roster, while we’re hoping to dress 21. I’ve been telling my guys there are no more moral victories. We can’t get to the fourth quarter and let another one slip by.”

Ripon Christian’s closing stretch consists of road games at Escalon and Orestimba followed by the regular-season finale at home with undefeated Sonora. Ripon hosts Sonora next week, then Escalon before heading to Hilmar in Week 10.

In other Week 7 action:

Valley Oak League

East Union (0-3, 4-3) at Central Catholic (1-1, 3-3): Still in search of its first league win of the season, EU now gets to face a rested and irritated Central Catholic squad that took its first loss since 2019 two weeks ago against Manteca.

The five-time reigning champion Raiders will be without top running back Joey Alcutt (618 yards, 9.5 per carry, five TDs) after he was ejected from the Manteca game.

There is never a shortage of talent at CC, however, with two-way standouts Wyatt Dragoo (296-5.5-4) and Carter Meeks (164-4.6-2) capable of picking up the slack. Chase Perino will also get his share of touches. He has 363 total yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns.

Central is as battle-tested as anyone in this half of the Section, having faced top teams out of Portland (Central Catholic) and Nevada (Bishop Manogue).

Mountain House (0-3, 0-7) at Manteca (2-0, 5-1): With construction ongoing on its own facility, Manteca will host the winless Mustangs at East Union’s Dino Cunial Stadium.

Mountain House has had a rough go in its first run through the VOL gauntlet, though the Mustangs gave SJS Division IV runner-up Patterson some trouble last week in a 37-19 loss. They jumped out to a 13-0 first-quarter lead but ultimately could not not keep pace with Patterson's high-octane offense.

Track sprinter Erin Foster is the centerpiece of Mountain House’s spread offense. The electric dual-threat quarterback has thrown for 791 yards and seven touchdowns and is also the Mustangs’ leading rusher with 431 yards and five TDs. He showed off his arm on two TD passes to Kaden Ransohoff last week, including a 74-yarder.

They have another promising youngster in freshman running back Jacoby Johnson (301 yards, 3.6 per carry, two TDs). Seniors Charles Wolfe (20 catches, 282 yards, TD) and Ransohoff (13-346-5) are their top receivers.

Western Athletic Conference

Johansen (2-1, 3-3) at Lathrop (3-0, 5-1): The Spartans have a great opportunity to separate themselves from the rest of the pack these next two weeks, as they march closer to their first-ever conference championship.

They’re preparing for an all-out, ground-and-pound slugfest with Johansen, which kept itself in title contention after rumbling past Pacheco at home, 34-13. The Vikings pounded the Panthers for 312 yards and four touchdowns on 43 carries.

Kean Saing (631 yards, 9.1 per carry, nine TDs) and Jairus Vasquez (442-8.0-4) lead their physical ground attack, and they run behind the likes of 6-1, 285-pound guard Richard Nuku, who is also a force on the defensive line.

Johansen’s first two losses came early in the season and against Orestimba and Bear River, both 5-1 teams. The Vikings were upset at Ceres two weeks ago, 25-20. Lathrop downed Ceres 34-14 in its last game.

Mother Lode League

River Islands (0-3, 1-5) at Summerville (2-1, 5-1): The most unforgiving part of River Islands’ first varsity schedule is nearing its end.

The Riptide are heading to Gold Country for the second time in three weeks after losing to Calaveras and Linden, both MLL contenders, by a combined score of 133-0.

Summerville is looking to bounce back from a 35-34 heartbreaker at Calaveras. The Bears battled back from a 19-0 halftime deficit, only to lose on blocked point-after kick following their final touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Quarterback Bryce Leveroos spearheaded the comeback charge, rushing for four second-half touchdowns. Running back Colton Cash added a 75-yard TD run.

River Islands’ next two league games are against Bret Harte and Riverbank, which are also winless in league.