Free State junior quarterback Wesley Edison runs the ball against Lawrence High on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022.

Cross-city tensions and postseason aspirations will be on full display when the Free State and Lawrence High football teams clash in the City Showdown on Friday night at FSHS.

The Firebirds (6-0), looking to finish the regular season unblemished, will be challenged by a Chesty Lions (4-2) squad eager to reenter the win column after a bitter 35-6 loss to 6A favorite Gardner Edgerton last week at home. The annual rivalry returns to FSHS for the first time with fans present since 2018, after the Firebirds bested the Chesty Lions on LHS’ home turf last season.

Two dual-threat quarterbacks, Free State senior Wesley Edison and Lawrence High junior Banks Bowen, will undoubtedly make their mark on the game. Each has amassed nearly 1,000 yards passing and at least 600 more on the ground since the regular season began.

Edison and the Firebirds have been successful since Week 1. Both the offense and defense have grown through the first six games this fall and are still finding ways to improve.

LHS’s junior quarterback is more than capable of orchestrating an effective offense, FSHS head coach Kevin Stewart said, so the Firebirds will need to work even harder on their defense.

“Defensively, we’re still working on the fundamentals that will still need to improve for this week,” Stewart said. “Offensively, we’re still working with the plays we’re still familiar with, and we’re still trying to work on the plays that we hope will work against LHS.”

LHS, meanwhile, will be trying to contain Edison and to breach a Free State defense that’s allowed an average of just 13.8 points per game.

Offensively, the Lions will be working without starting senior offensive lineman Will Hendricks, who left LHS’ 37-22 homecoming win over Shawnee Mission North with a foot injury. That means senior lineman Kem Allen will have extra work to do on both sides of the ball.

LHS will also give the Firebirds a taste of its varied run game. Tailbacks Malcolm Paul and Tahj Edwards are two elusive ball-handlers who have garnered the majority of touches this year, and LHS has looked to senior Tony Jacobsen in recent games to lighten the load.

The FSHS defense has effectively limited the run this season, led by junior Hyrum Vaeono up front, so Lions head coach Clint Bowen said this week’s scouting report will be as important as ever.

“If they’re going to load the box, we’re going to work on passing it,” Bowen said. “That’s just our philosophy … I think for where we’re at right now, they’re still working on their first steps and their fundamentals. Kids at the high school level don’t get into ‘these guys are in that stance and have that weakness.’ They’re more into the mindset of ‘I need to get aligned here; this is my job.'”

The outcome of this year’s meeting will have postseason implications for both teams. Free State could cement itself in the top table of the Class 6A playoff and secure a home-field advantage in the first round. LHS is also fighting for a first-round home game and to remain a two-loss team entering the playoff.

“This is clearly a big one,” Bowen said. “But for us right now, it’s about going out, handling our business and winning a rivalry game.”

“Our message to the team is taking it one play at a time,” Stewart said. “If they get something on us, we have to move on to the next play. If we do that enough, we’ll win the game, but if they do that more, then they’ll win. That’s all that this game comes down to.”

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at Free State High School. There will be a ceremony honoring longtime Lawrence school district superintendent Randy Weseman, who died of cancer a year ago, shortly before kickoff in the south end zone.

photo by: Landon Cory/Journal-World photo

Lawrence quarterback Banks Bowen runs past a defender in the first quarter against Olathe West in Lawrence on Friday, Sept. 8th, 2023.