PEMBROKE — From the outside, Friday’s Lumberton-Purnell Swett game doesn’t look to have too much at stake, as the teams meet in a season finale for both, with no playoff implications.

But those on the outside don’t understand the Lumberton-Purnell Swett series. There is, in fact, plenty on the line when the teams meet at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Pembroke.

Both teams are looking to avoid a winless conference record, as they seek to send seniors off with a victory and enter the off-season on a high note after struggling through the fall campaign — not to mention the bragging rights up for grabs in Robeson County’s biggest rivalry.

“We definitely want to end it on a high note, and I’m sure Swett wants to do the same thing,” Lumberton coach Adam Deese said. “I’m sure this game will come down to a matter of will and want. We’ve had our past, we can’t control what took place there, but what we can do is control our future and we’ve got one more opportunity to make a stand this year and try to carry momentum into next season. Our guys came in focused (Monday) and hopefully we can get ready for Friday and put on a good show for Robeson County.”

“It’s Lumberton, you don’t have to do a whole lot of ramping up for that, the kids are excited about it,” Purnell Swett coach Stephen Roberson said. “The coaches, we try to treat it like any other game with information and planning-wise, but there’s always an extra edge put in there.”

The back-and-forth nature of the rivalry shows in the all-time series record: it’s currently tied 19-19. Purnell Swett has won three of the last four meetings and is 12-9 against the Pirates since 2000; Lumberton, though, has won six of the last nine meetings.

While both teams are seeking their first United-8 Conference win in the finale, Lumberton (0-9, 0-6 United-8) looks to avoid a winless campaign overall. Purnell Swett (2-7, 0-6 United-8) was in the same situation each of the last two times the teams played, earning a 13-5 victory in Lumberton last season and a 24-21 overtime win at home in 2019.

“We look at Lumberton like we know we’re going to get their best shot, they’re going to get our best shot,” Roberson said. “I said last year if we’d played as hard in some other games as we played in the Lumberton game we would’ve gotten some more wins. I hope I don’t come out of this one saying that.”

The teams did not play due to COVID-19 protocols during the spring 2021 season; Lumberton’s last series win came in a 34-21 decision in 2018. No current Ram has lost to Lumberton, no current Pirate has beaten Purnell Swett, and both teams had a different head coach at the time of the last Pirates win.

“Our senior class, this is going to be a tell-tale sign in this rivalry; yes, it’s been some tight ballgames, but we’ve been on the losing end of those here in the past and it’s time to flip that switch,” Deese said. “Our biggest challenge is approaching it as a rivalry. I thought last year it meant more to Swett than it did to Lumberton. When it comes to rivalry, anything of that sort, throw the records out the window, it’s a matter of want to.”

“I don’t think one school ever wants to lose to the other regardless of the amount of time and distance in between (wins),” Roberson said. “Each year takes on its own personality, and we’ve got to come ready to fight each year.”

Purnell Swett is coming off a 28-20 loss to Douglas Byrd Friday in which the Rams led 20-6 entering the fourth quarter. The Rams have lost seven straight games since opening the season with consecutive wins over Seaforth and Fairmont.

Alex Dial (332 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns) and Darius Bethea (three rushing touchdowns) have been key for the Rams’ running game, while Marcus Lowry (310 receiving yards, three touchdowns) and Jace Lowry (148 receiving yards, three touchdowns) have been the leading targets for quarterback Raymond Cummings (292 passing yards, two touchdowns).

“They’ve got a good back,” Deese said. “When they connect on their passing game, they’re a threat vertically, and with the run. The biggest thing that stands out that I see from them is their front; Swett always has a good physical front. We need our guys to be able to combat that. I think that’s where this game’s going to come down to is up front and who’s going to be more physical and set the tone up front.”

As Purnell Swett faces the Pirates defense, the Rams will need to maintain their assignments against a physical group that gives multiple schematic looks, Roberson said.

Lumberton was winless in three games in the spring 2021 season and was 0-7 in conference play in 2019, but the Pirates are trying to avoid their first winless record in a full season since 2004.

The Pirates’ struggles this season have been exacerbated by a high number of injuries, leaving underclassmen to fill roles in many cases that they weren’t expected to have to fill.

“I’ve never been a part of a year with the amount of injuries that we’ve had this year,” Deese said. “But the good side of that is that you have a lot of guys with youth that have the opportunity to show what they can do. A lot of our good guys have stepped into roles far sooner than what we expected, but their willingness and want to has been a pleasant surprise, and I think that’s going to be a good token to carry into the future.”

Jacoby Pevia (215 rushing yards), Christopher McCallum (161 rushing yards) and Michael Pitts (two rushing touchdowns) are among the key backs in the Pirates’ run-heavy offense.

“Offensively, they have some really explosive backs,” Roberson said. “It doesn’t take but a crease for a few of them, they’re really fast, so we’ll have to be especially sound making sure we’re filling gaps and shutting down run lanes.”

Fans should expect a close game between the Pirates and Rams; three of the last four meetings have been one-possession games, with none decided by more than 13 points. And regardless of each program’s struggles, a big crowd is likely to enter Big Mo Stadium to watch the rivals face off.

“It’s going to be big; there’s going to be people in the stands regardless of our records on Friday night, ready for this game,” Deese said. “We’ve got to be upbeat, we’ve got to be ready to represent. Whoever comes out on top victorious will be the team that makes less mistakes and is the most disciplined team.”

Red Springs at Fairmont

Another in-county game is also on the docket for the final Friday of the regular season as Fairmont hosts Red Springs at 7 p.m.

Like Lumberton-Purnell Swett, both teams in this game will not qualify for the state playoffs, meaning Friday’s game will end their season.

Red Springs (0-9, 0-5 Southeastern Athletic Conference) seeks to avoid its first winless season in program history. The Red Devils lost 54-32 to East Bladen last week.

Curtis Wilson (476 rushing yards, two touchdowns), Jakelsin Mack (373 rushing yards, one touchdown), T.J. Ellerbe (258 rushing yards, one touchdown) and Mishon Wilson (247 rushing yards, two touchdowns; 266 receiving yards, four touchdowns) have been among the bright spots offensively for the Red Devils; each of these players except Mishon Wilson is expected to return next season.

Fairmont (2-7, 1-4 Southeastern) has had two weeks to prepare for the Red Devils with a bye last week; the Golden Tornadoes lost 42-26 to East Bladen in their last outing on Oct. 14. Fairmont beat West Bladen 18-0 for its lone conference win on Oct. 7, and also has a Week 1 win over Lumberton.

Gabriel Washington (769 passing yards, six touchdowns; 403 rushing yards, four touchdowns) is a dual-threat at quarterback for the Golden Tornadoes; Travelius Leach (561 receiving yards, five touchdowns) leads the Southeastern in receiving yards.

Fairmont won last year’s meeting 42-0 at Red Springs, ending a four-game winning streak in the series by the Red Devils. Since the teams realigned as conference opponents in 2001, Red Springs leads the series 11-10.

St. Pauls at East Bladen

The one Robeson County team who isn’t playing its final game of the season Friday is St. Pauls, who will advance to the state playoffs next week — but not before Friday’s regular-season finale at East Bladen at 7 p.m.

East Bladen (4-5, 3-2 Southeastern) is playing its third-straight Robeson County opponent after a 42-26 win over Fairmont on Oct. 14 and a 54-32 win last week at Red Springs. The Eagles have won three straight games overall.

Junior back Masion Brooks has rushed for over 1,200 yards this season and has 15 rushing touchdowns, including six combined scores in the last two games.

St. Pauls (6-2, 4-1 Southeastern) beat West Bladen 42-13 last week after suffering its lone conference loss the week prior, a 23-20 decision at Clinton which made the difference in the conference championship race.

Senior running back Kemarion Baldwin scored his 75th career rushing touchdown last week; he has rushed for 1,684 yards and 23 touchdowns this season, and is 13 rushing touchdowns away from matching James McDougald’s Robeson County record. He will likely surpass 5,500 career rushing yards Friday.

St. Pauls is ranked 17th in the NCHSAA’s RPI rankings for the 2A East Region, comfortably in the state playoff field. East Bladen is ranked 28th, with 32 teams advancing into the postseason.

East Bladen leads the all-time series 14-9, but St. Pauls has won three straight over the Eagles, including last year’s 44-12 win.