Arvie Crouch wiped off beads of sweat from his brow after a Hamilton High School football practice earlier this week.
It wasn’t because of the heat. The Big Blue — from top to bottom — were simply working to prepare for Friday night’s Greater Miami Conference rivalry matchup against Fairfield.
“We just had a really good practice,” said Crouch, Hamilton’s third-year coach. “It was very aggressive. Got a lot of work in. They get right to work. They’re having a blast. They’re a great bunch of kids.”
The Big Blue are having fun — to the tune of a three-game winning streak that includes last week’s 34-0 romping of Princeton. Hamilton takes that momentum into Fairfield Alumni Stadium for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
“I think it’s one of the biggest wins, considering all the picture, in Big Blue history,” Crouch said. “I’ve been saying this, and we preached a lot to the kids, that they’re going through journeys and what they do with the opportunities, that’s up to them with their legacy in this program.
“Most of all, they just decided to play to their level. We’ve got some guys. We’ve got some really good players. We’ve been playing very average, in my opinion, especially on offense. They woke up, man. They woke up. They look like a different team.”
Hamilton (4-2, 3-2 GMC) has won just two of the last 11 meetings against Fairfield (2-4, 2-3 GMC). Big Blue came out with a 31-28 overtime victory last season.
“I really like the fact that when it’s Hamilton week, our discussion is the records go out the window,” said Jason Krause, who is in his 14th season as Fairfield’s coach. “How you’re playing goes out the window. It’s always been a big rivalry game for me as a coach, being at Middletown and then here. I think for the kids and for us, it’s that team on the other side of the river. It’s been a good rivalry for us.
“Last year was a really good football game. They had a really good season. That’s kind of the point we want to make to our kids this week that it’s a brand new week. We’re getting better every week. We’ve got to bring our A game Friday night.”
The GMC’s top two running backs will go head-to-head.
Fairfield senior Tyler George leads the conference with 690 yards and has six touchdowns. Hamilton senior Gracen Goldsmith has 635 yards rushing and seven scores.
“The focus remains on us,” Crouch said. “It always has been. We’ve been our worst enemy. We’ve preached and preached and preached that it’s all about us against us. If we do what we’re supposed to do, the gameplan’s ready and the gameplan’s good, you just need to execute it to the level that we can — and that’s what we did this past Friday.”
Hamilton’s veteran defense has been spectacular in 2024, while Fairfield’s inexperienced defense has been trying to piece things together.
The Big Blue give up 11 points a game, which is second in the GMC behind Lakota West’s 8 a game. The Indians allow 32 points a contest.
“We’ve still got a really young bunch on defense,” Krause said. “Most of our seniors are on offense. The offense has clicked a little bit better at this point in the season. But those young guys are learning. They’re battling. There’s no quit in them. Still learning football a little bit — especially the speed they’re playing at on Friday nights.”
Hamilton junior linebacker CJ Bryant is third in the GMC with 54 tackles, and Fairfield junior safety Gabe Ross is right behind him with 53.
IN THE KNOW
Goldsmith rushed for a career-high 166 yards and three touchdowns against Princeton. … Fairfield quarterback Dominic Back has thrown for 796 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s tossed an interception in each of the last two games. … Fairfield scores 24 points a game, while Hamilton puts up 19.
