Full House Expected At Matandy As Badin Hosts Hamilton In Season Opener
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By Rick Cassano
HAMILTON – Badin High School’s Matandy SportsPlex is expected to be jam-packed for season-opening rivalry football Friday night.
City rival Hamilton will come to the Rams’ turf for the first time in the eighth meeting between the two programs.
“We’re ready. We’re hungry. I think we got it,” Badin senior offensive tackle Chance Retherford said. “I’m just excited. It’s my last year here, and all I want to do is hunt. We’re working harder than ever because I think a lot of people have put us down this year after the great season we had and a lot of seniors leaving. We don’t see it that way at all.”
Retherford said Hamilton is right at the top of his rivalry list.
“They’re five minutes away, everybody knows everyone, it’s going to be a loaded crowd,” he said. “We want this one more than anything.”
The Rams own a 5-2 lead in the series, which began in 1980. This will be the fourth straight year they’ve clashed, and Hamilton coach Arvie Crouch said the schools have already committed to another two years.
“Badin’s always a great game for us,” Crouch said. “It means a lot more to us in this area than going to play a Moeller or an Elder or somebody like that. This is more of a positive impact on our city.”
Badin coach Nick Yordy had a lengthy stint on Crouch’s coaching staff at Mount Healthy, so they go back a long way.
Yordy said there’s plenty of reasons why Rams vs. Big Blue is always a huge event.
“This is the first time at our place, so it should be fun,” said Yordy, a 1997 Badin graduate. “I don’t think I ever played a game against Hamilton, but there’s obviously history there with it and the fact that at one point our home games were at Hamilton, then we were told they were not going to be at Hamilton anymore.
“There’s a dynamic there, but there’s always something each week, each game, to put a little chip on everybody’s shoulder. I know our kids are going to be fired up. If they’re not, that’s one me.”
On paper, this matchup looks like it will feature a lot of ball carrying on both sides. The Rams’ Chase Even and Big Blue’s Amerius Stringer are junior running backs who figure to have big seasons in 2026.
The quarterback scenario is somewhat unique with a pair of first-year starters. Junior Trae Davidson will be directing the offense for HHS, and he was at Badin last year. Junior Davis Martin has been penciled in as the Rams’ No. 1 guy this season.
Martin, though, has been slowed by illness this week. And if he can’t play, Yordy said sophomore Jimmy Gajewski — the Rams’ freshman QB in 2025 — will get his first varsity start.
“We have tons of confidence in Jimmy if that is the case. He’s really composed for being a younger guy,” Yordy said. “We’re not changing our offense. We’re not reinventing the wheel here. You’ve got to have that next-man-up mentality. All of us feel fine no matter who’s back there. We’ll do what we do.”
Davidson dealt with an injury last year at Badin and saw some junior varsity action in the latter part of the season. Crouch said he’s a capable thrower and runner.
“He’s very good instincts,” Crouch said. “We’ll see how it goes when the lights are on.”
The Big Blue coach said the 5-foot-11, 214-pound Stringer is a strong runner who could fit in with Hamilton’s long line of high-quality running backs.
“I tell people we’re starting to become Running Back U.,” Crouch said. “Stringer’s really looking good. He’s a 720-pound dead lifter. He’s a freak show in the weight room and tough as nails.”
Crouch said his offensive line isn’t huge, but he likes the group’s athleticism. He pointed to senior safeties Chase Moak and Quaylen Hamilton, along with junior outside linebacker Jason Fisher-Coffee, as the leaders on defense.
“We’re raw, we’re young, we’re inexperienced, but we’ve got some guys that can play,” Crouch said. “Hopefully we can simplify the game plan enough that they’re successful in what they’re doing. We’re pretty athletic. We’re flying around. I’m going to coach the dudes that are here and love Big Blue.”
Asked if he thought his crew was ready to go on the road and win a rivalry game in front of a huge crowd, Crouch replied, “I don’t know. They’ve got to decide what they want to be, men or mice. We’ll find out.”
Even ran wild in Badin’s final scrimmage at Monroe, and Yordy said junior Chace Blanton also had success on the ground. Retherford said the O-linemen can’t wait to block for them.
Retherford said he’s adjusting to his move from guard to tackle this year. Sophomore Bentley Moyer is the other tackle, seniors Dominic Bowling and Evan Price are the guards, and senior Sawyer Arnold is the ball snapper.
“The line is coming together,” said Retherford, who was a student in the Hamilton district before coming to Badin as a freshman. “I really do think we’re a lot better than we thought we’d be.”
Crouch said he’s expecting to see a disciplined Badin squad.
“I’ve got a ton of respect for their program,” Crouch said. “I couldn’t be more proud of Yordy being one of my coaches for a long time. They’ve got a tradition over there of winning, and we’re kind of on a roller coaster right now. Hopefully we can outplay them a little bit Friday.”
Hamilton had a four-way scrimmage with Franklin, Lima Bath and Wyoming, then finished against Kings. The Rams competed in a weather-shortened scrimmage against Talawanda and Fairborn before facing Monroe.
HHS has a much larger enrollment than Badin, and it’s natural to think that Hamilton has a lot more to lose in a Division I vs. Division II matchup like this. But Crouch said he doesn’t view it like that.
“I think it’s great for the city for us to do this game,” he said. “I think Badin’s a Butler County all-star team, so you can throw the divisions out and the numbers in the school. They’re getting kids from all over the place, we’ve got Hamilton kids, and I’m OK with that. My old coach Ed Mignery used to say if you’re playing in a state championship, it doesn’t matter what division you’re in … you’re a damn good football team.”
