Blue-collar Bishop Lynch will take their shot at one of the titans of high school football when the Friars meet John Curtis in Shreveport on Thursday night.

Who: John Curtis (LA) vs. Bishop Lynch (TX)

Where: Independence Bowl, Shreveport, LA

When: Thursday, Sept. 6 at 6 PM CT

Watch: LIVE on FloFootball

The seemingly always mighty Patriots enter fresh off of a 42-18 thrashing of Landry-Walker in the opener—a game in which senior Ma’Khi Smith led a rushing attack that finished with over 300 yards and six touchdowns.

The victory was the 570th for head coach JT Curtis Jr., who is in his 50th year as the head coach at John Curtis.

Bishop Lynch didn’t exactly ease into the regular season. The Friars opened with Deion Sanders’ star-studded Trinity Christian program, who took a 21-17 lead into the break and then simply held on in a defensive-dominated second half, to hand Bishop Lynch a rare defeat, 23-19.

The loss is the second in a row for Bishop Lynch following a 12-0 start last season.

A Living Legend

John Curtis head coach JT Curtis Jr. just keeps on winning.

The 71-year-old is in his 50th year leading a program that he took from 0-10 in his first season as head coach in 1969 to the highest of peaks, winning a national title in 2012.

Curtis has won 26 state championships and has never again had a losing season as the head coach of the Patriots. Over the course of the past five decades as the man in charge of a Louisiana juggernaut, Curtis has compiled a 570-64-6 record.

He is the winningest active high school coach in the country and trails only former Summerville (SC) head coach John McKissick (622) all-time.

Bishop Lynch Must Stop The Run

One week after surrendering 191 rushing yards and two touchdowns to Baylor commit Qualan Jones, Bishop Lynch’s vaunted front seven will need to bounce back in a hurry.

John Curtis gutted Landry-Walker last week, rushing for 311 yards and 18 of the team’s 19 first downs. Senior Ma’Khi Smith is the bell cow. He rushed for 134 yards and two scores and will lead a handful of running backs in Curtis’ split back veer offense.

Will Guggenheim Play?

John Curtis quarterback Collin Guggenheim was held out of last week’s win over Landry-Walker with an ankle injury. He’s considered questionable for tomorrow night’s game.

If Guggenheim is unable to go, it will again be junior Austin McCready under center.

Prospects to Watch

Gabriel Murphy, LB, Bishop Lynch — 3-star, committed to North Texas

Grayson Murphy, LB, Bishop Lynch — 3-star, committed to North Texas

Donald Clay, S, John Curtis — 3-star, committed to SMU

Warren Walls, DE, Bishop Lynch — 3-star, committed to SMU

Jack Bradley, TE, Bishop Lynch — 3-star, committed to Rice

Collin Guggenheim, QB, John Curtis — unranked, uncommitted