It's the veteran against the new kid on the block as Chi-Hi comes to town to take on Memorial

The trajectory of the two coaches who will be on the sidelines at Carson Park for the Leader-Telegram’s high school Game of the Week couldn’t be more different.

On the home side of the field for the game that kicks off at 7 p.m. Friday will be Memorial High School head football coach Tom Westcott leading his squad in his first home game for the Old Abes. On the opposing side, is legendary Chippewa Falls head coach Raykovich. Just mention his nickname, ‘RAY-KO’ and every high school gridiron fan in the area will know who you are referring to.

Westcott made his high school head coaching debut for Memorial on the road against Hudson last Friday, while Raykovich began year 39 of coaching the Cardinals in his home away from home for almost four decades now and that would be Dorais Field.

Beyond those differences, there is the common ground that likely all head coaches possess and that would be the will to win and the love of the game.

In his almost-four decades with the Cardinals, Raykovich has seen it all. And he never tires of the game, in fact it’s in his blood.

“I love the game of football, the kids I work with and the school I coach at,” Raykovich told the Leader-Telegram in this publication’s high school football preview issue earlier this month.

As for the new kid on the block, Westcott isn’t really new to Memorial, as he has served an assistant coach the past three seasons, but this will be the first time he takes the field at Carson Park as head coach of the Old Abes.

Just as different as their tenures are the results from both teams’ Week One games.

The Cardinals scored 36 straight to defeat SPASH, 36-21, last Thursday at Dorais Field to win their home opener. Chi-Hi was down at one point to the Panthers, 14-0, but had narrowed the gap to seven points entering the second half. The Cardinals held SPASH to one touchdown in the second half to get the victory.

As for the Old Abes, they kept it close and it looked promising for them in the first half of play, as Hudson took only a 28-20 lead into the locker room.

The second half was an entirely different story, though, as Hudson scored 28 answered points in the third and fourth quarters to secure the 56-20 win over their former Big Rivers conference rival. Memorial football left the Big Rivers Conference at the end of the 2023 gridiron season and is now a member of the Wisconsin Valley Conference.

For the Cardinals, they are hoping to maintain the momentum gained in their Week One victory to go 2-0 on Friday. The Old Abes are hoping to play the kind of football they did in that first half against Hudson last week to win one for their new coach and improve to .500 on the still-young high school gridiron season.

“Chippewa Falls brings in a lot of senior experience and leadership this year that has ran their system for a number of years. While the double wing has been their bread and butter, we also all will be ready for their spread look they have dabbled with lately. This week we will focus on what we can control, we will do our job!,” Westcott told the Leader-Telegram.

Westcott noted following the Hudson game that despite the loss, “it was an honor to lead the Old Abes on Friday night. The boys played hard and I am extremely proud of our start. We are looking forward to being the best version of ourselves as we move forward, we’ve only scratched the surface.”

In the preview for this week’s game, the new Old Abes head coach added that he is particularly focused on a few things that he feels will improve the team as the season progresses.

“We are focused on becoming one play warriors that flush the bad ones, learn from them, and attack the next play as if it were the most important of the game,” Westcott said.

Raykovich said the key thing he took away from his team’s Week One victory against SPASH is this: “The kids didn’t give up being 14 points down early in the game,” the Cardinals’ head coach told the Leader-Telegram, adding that he was impressed with Chi-Hi’s “good team speed, however we made many curable mistakes.”

That said, Raykovich, whose high school head coaching career actually spans more than five decades total, knows that defeating a determined Old Abes squad is going to mean that his team has its work cut out for them.

“Memorial is very athletic and look very good at what they do on both offense and defense,” Raykovich said.

As for taking the home field as Memorial’s new gridiron leader, Westcott knows it’s going to be a special moment for him and the team to play under the Friday Night Lights of Carson Park.

“There’s no place like home! In terms of differences, there’s a sense of familiarity that comes with playing at home that I believe will help us play fast and physical. I’m looking forward for the Eau Claire community to pack Carson Park, cheer loudly and support the Old Abes,” Westcott said.