Road Trip To Trenton A Homecoming For Stevens

Former Bulldog A Foe As Old Rivalry Renews

Scott Stevens hasn’t forgotten what it felt like on Oct. 26, 2007. After two years of being denied a district championship, the Trenton Bulldogs had broken Brookfield’s grasp on the district, prevailing with a 44-25 win over what was then Trenton’s fiercest rival. The victory propelled Trenton into the state playoffs, where it ran all the way to the state quarterfinals and ended a run of seven-straight playoff appearances for Brookfield.
Tonight (Friday), Stevens will return to the very scene where, all those years ago, one of his fondest high school memories originated – C.F. Russell Stadium.
“In high school Brookfield and Trenton was a big rivalry,” Stevens said. “We both had really good teams and there was always a lot on the line in those games. The winner was always the district champ.
“Our senior year we were finally able to get over the hump and beat a very good Brookfield team.”
In a bizarre bit of irony, Stevens was hired as the head coach at Brookfield three years ago. It is his first head coaching position, taken after three years at Trenton, the last of which he served as the Bulldogs’ defensive coordinator.
As a senior running back at Trenton, Stevens rushed for 1,064 yards on 144 carries. He scored 11 touchdowns and caught another five balls for 115 yards and two more scores. At the team banquet, Stevens was honored with the Mr. Football Award, the highest honor Trenton bestows on an individual player.
“It is, no doubt, exciting,” Stevens said of his return to Trenton. “Trenton will always be a special place. It is where I grew up and found my love for football. It is also where I got my start coaching. It will be weird being on the visitors sideline but as soon as the game starts it will be business as usual.”
Stevens enters his fourth year as head coach at Brookfield. Like Trenton, Brookfield has struggled in recent seasons, going just 5-25 under Stevens.
But the program is looking to turn the corner in 2020. A victory last year in the Bell Game – Brookfield’s long standing rivalry with Marceline – was Stevens’ first. Facing off with Trenton in week 1 will give Brookfield an opportunity to carry that momentum over into this season.
Though the town and the program still hold a special place in his heart, Stevens sees this match-up being a highly physical game. He knows Trenton too well to think anything will come easy.
“It will definitely be a dogfight,” Stevens said. “Both teams pride themselves on playing a physical style of football. We know that Trenton will be well coached and ready to go.”