LAKEVILLE - Another small-school high school football showdown in Lakeville, Indiana Friday, August 28. Class 1A IFCA #5 North Judson and LaVille have played tough, physical high school football for over 10 years now. The Friday Night Lights will shine brightly August 28 as these two meet at Lancer Field in Lakeville, Indiana. Kick is scheduled for 7:30 PM EDT. It will be the 21st meeting in the series, with LaVille leading, 11-9. "I think you go back to last year and that pretty much sums up the series," said new LaVille head football coach Matt Thacker. "North Judson pulled out a victory last year in week two and then a lot of these guys flipped the script in the sectional last year. No wonder the series has been this close since 2015. However, I am sure they have been rallying around that sectional game and will be ready to play football Friday night." LHS edged then #3 (Class 1A) NJSP, 24-22, in the 2025 Indiana High School 1A sectional semifinals at Liberty Field. LaVille went on to win the 2025 1A sectional title. Last week, the Bluejays shutout Knox, 42-0, as Javen Christensen completed 6-of-8 passes for 122 yards and a score. He also ran five times for 13 yards and another tally. LaVille, meanwhile, worked to get the early-season kinks out in a 24-6 victory at Triton in week one. "The effort, when they first got here at Triton you could see the effort," said the first-year LHS boss. "The kids just wanted to be successful." "Offensively, they'll seem similar to us in some aspects and not so much in others," Thacker said when asked about Judson. "They'll want to establish the run, but do a great job of play action and we'll need to be disciplined in our reads." Once Thacker's club got moving, they simply made more plays and wore down Triton. Senior Dylan Miller rushed for 126 yards and a touchdown to lead a balanced running attack. The last two meetings between Judson and LaVille were decided by just one score. NJSP took a 21-14 decision in the regular season before the Lancers escaped a thriller by two points a few later in the state playoffs. "Defensively, they'll line up and hit you and don't make any bones about it," Thacker noted when asked about the Bluejays. "They caused several turnovers last week and they'll look to do the same this week. I would imagine they'll make it a priority to take away our option game, but may be looking at how we run the toss. It will be up to us to figure that out." According to Thacker, #41 (Zander Nowak) stands out as he is physical and a great target in their play action attack. He's also a heck of an OLB. (Branden Metzger) #20 is another player who stands out as he plays NT. He is quick and he can give us trouble. (Javen Christensen) #11 is their QB and he does a great job of running their option and does a great job in their play action game. (Evan McGowen) #22 is a motor that runs the engine as he is a very hard runner and is a great leader. He'll be a challenge all night long. We had the chance to ask the Lancer boss about what his Lancers' need to do to be successful. "We have to commit to stopping the run and also be able to run the ball. We must also value the football and not give them short fields or easy scores. It's a pretty simple gameplan, but they will definitely have something to say about that." As we closed our time, Thacker showed his appreciation to LaVille fans and the student section that trekked to Bourbon. "The fans, the student section were awesome last week!" smiled Thacker. "We hope they enjoyed singing the school song after the game. Win or lose we'll do the same this week. We Looking forward to Friday Night! "Go Lancers!" Game on ... G A M E D A Y Teams: IFCA #5 North Judson-San Pierre (1-0) at LaVille (1-0) Time: 7:30 PM EDT Site: Lancer Field, Lakeville, IN. Coaches: Brett Lambert, 68-23 in 8th year at North Judson. Matt Thacker, 1-0 in 1st year at LaVille, 32-50 in 9th year overall. Last Outing: North Judson defeated Knox, 42-0. LaVille defeated Triton, 24-6. Series: LaVille leads North Judson-San Pierre, 11-9, since 1985 Last Meeting: LaVille def. North Judson-San Pierre, 24-22, Oct. 31, 2025, sectional Live-Stream: Click https://www.ihsaatv.org/?B=4308498