by Maleny Mireles
The milk jug painted blue and orange, in the colors of the two rivalries, lies in the hands of the winning football team of the biggest game of the year. New Prairie’s win against LaPorte this year, beating them 42-18, breaks the winning streak of the Slicers that began in 2014 with a Cougar loss of 56-42. “I was super excited to bring home the jug because I have played football my whole high school career and that was the first time we have won it since I was on the team,” said Aaron Smith, New Prairie’s senior offensive lineman.
The battle for the jug began in 2003 when two student reporters, Matt Gard and Koby Keck, initiated the trophy between the New Prairie versus LaPorte game to be the milk jug. “The milk jug has not always been the trophy, but the scores are written on both sides, dating from 1971,” said Bill Gumm, New Prairie’s varsity assistant and junior varsity’s head football coach.
LaPorte’s half of the jug has 31 wins and New Prairie has 8 wins. The winner of the game each year gets to keep the milk jug at their school as a trophy and inspiration to withhold it from the other team the next year.
The battle for the jug isn’t the only motivation for the football team.
The battle for the bone, “makes the kids want to win,” said Gumm.
Head coach of the football team, Russell Radtke, initiated the battle of the bone within his first years coaching at New Prairie, seven years ago.
Radtke introduced a fémur bone from a cow to the football team as their own trophy. The bone represents their wishbone offense.
Coach Radtke picks a game every year and if the team loses the game, the bone must be taken away from the team and stays locked up. If the team wins the selected game, they are to carry the bone on game days as a trophy and keep it until their winning streak is lost.
New Prairie won the selected game five out of the seven years. The bone was taken away early this year after the Cougars lost to Andrean, the selected team for this year, 44-28.
“When we lost the bone game, formally known as Andrean week, it was heartbreaking, knowing that we won’t ever get to walk the halls and carry that bone with pride,” said Javier Padilla, New Prairie’s senior defensive tackle.
The team could get the bone back if they were to play the same team again, but New Prairie isn’t scheduled to play Andrean again this year.
“There’s been a time where we’ve lost against the team in regular season and then won against the same team later on in the sectionals, getting the bone back,” said Gumm.
The milk jug and the bone are traditions that will remain at the high school as a motivation for the players and their pride.