On Friday night, for the first time since 1993, Sharon and Farrell football teams met. Earlier in the afternoon, Isles, regarding the resumption of the storied rivalry wrote that the only way the much-anticipated contest would not take place would be " ... provided there are no natural disasters or blown transformers ... ''

So guess what happened with 1:58 remaining in the third quarter at Tiger Stadium and Sharon leading Farrell, 16-13? Three banks of light standards on the south side of the field gradually dimmed as the period progressed, then ultimately shut down entirely.

"This is freaky,'' veteran Farrell mentor Lou Falconi said while standing at midfield while an eerie, unnatural light not normally cast on a field on fall Friday nights shone. "I never experienced anything like this. It's a shame. But, you know, hey, Sharon and Farrell get together, what the hell, the lights go out. What do you expect? I mean, maybe that says something about them and us, I don't know.''

For the record, the game has been suspended and tentatively scheduled to be played on Friday, Nov. 5., unless either or both teams qualify for the postseason playoffs.

According to Rule 313, article 4, of the National Federation of State High Schools, "Games interrupted because of events beyond the control of the responsible administrative authority shall be continued from the point of interruption, unless the teams agree to terminate the game with the existing score, or there are conference, league or state association rules which apply.''

The decision to suspend the game, according to Sharon Police Chief Ray Green, " ... was strictly a safety issue. It was a 3-phase, high-voltage wire that's underground and goes across ... and at that point, because of the way it was 'arcing,' we had to shut it down due to safety reasons so nothing else happened.''

Green indicated the cause of the shortage had not been determined as of press time, but no injuries were reported and the capacity crowd, which eagerly anticipated the rivalry's renewal, dispersed in an orderly, albeit confused, fashion.

For the record, the contest displayed the talents of Farrell senior signal-caller J.J. Wilson and Sharon speedster Carmone Parchman. Wilson's arm and legs set up the Steelers' first score and accounted for the second, as Farrell assumed a 13-0 lead with 5:56 remaining until intermission. However, Sharon parlayed Parchman's 64- and 58-yard scoring sprints, sandwiching a 33-yard Jim Morocco field goal, into a 3-point lead with 7:26 remaining in the third quarter.

Farrell appeared to be headed toward a potential go-ahead score when Wilson, running out of punt formation on a fourth-and-3 play from his own 48-yard line, scrambled seven yards for a first down at Sharon's 45. However, he fumbled, with Justin Schweiss recovering for the Tigers.

Back-to-back sacks of Sharon signal-caller Mike Schneider by Farrell's Brandon Young and Leroy Smith III coerced a Morocco punt, as the Steelers regained possession at their own 24-yard line with 2:26 left in the period. Although no one realized it at the time, however, a half-minute and one play later, the contest ended.

With Wildman, Falconi and city and school officials meeting on the field while players huddled in groups, a decision was rendered.

"First we said, 'Let's wait 20 minutes,' having played that long, a game of this intensity, we didn't want kids to sit around too long,'' Wildman related, "because he (Falconi) plays Monaca; we play Grove City (next weekend). Our egos might be big, but not that big.

"So then the fire chief (Art Scarmack) came up and police chief, and said, 'We wanted to shut the lights off for a while, but we're afraid (of nearby gas lines), so we said, 'Okay,' Wildman explained.

Wilson's athleticism almost singlehandedly staked the Steelers to that early 2-touchdown lead. Beginning late in the first quarter, he engineered a 7-play, 74-yard, 3-minute, 56-second drive, culminating in Smith's 2-yard burst with 9:36 remaining in the second stanza. During the drive Wilson completed an 11-yard pass to Billy Dungee, then raced for 21 yards on a drive-sustaining third-and-6 play.

A Terrance Phillips fumble following a Ryan Squatrito pass behind the line of scrimmage set the stage for Farrell's second score. In seven plays the Steelers covered 37 yards, highlighted by Wilson's 25-yard TD toss to Marcellino Manilla on a fourth-and-10 play. Wilson, flushed from the pocket, threw on the run after eluding Sharon's Kevin Harris and Gerald Cottle.

However on the first play from scrimmage, Parchman exploded around left end for 64 yards and Morocco tacked on the conversion, drawing Sharon with 13-7.

Wilson then fumbled the ensuing kickoff, setting up Morocco's field goal seven plays later which enabled Sharon to close with 13-10 at intermission.

Approximately 4 1/2 minutes into the second half, a Jason Fromm interception of Wilson's second-down pass afforded Sharon possession at its own 42-yard line. On the very first play, Parchman again sprinted around the left side for a 58-yard score.

"That's a play we just put in this week. We've had it in our playbook, but did not run it based on the defenses that we've seen the first three weeks,'' Wildman related.

"I'm gonna make a promise, at the end of September, I won't mention 'youth' anymore,'' Wildman said regarding his club. "But I think, to be down 13-0 in a Sharon-Farrell game, starting five sophomores, and come back and take the lead with less than two minutes to go in the quarter says something about our kids.

"I don't think we did a good job tackling. Of course, I don't think we'll see another athlete like J.J. Wilson, either,'' Wildman acknowledged. "Obviously, he's a make-things-happen kid. But I think we did some things better and some things not so good, and we'll work on it this week.''

Despite the bizarre ending, Wildman and Falconi mutually agreed on the signficance of reviving the rivalry.

"Look at the crowd, look at this place!'' Falconi gushed. "People want to be involved in this, and I think we had as many people as they had, we had a pretty good crowd. It's just too bad for everybody's sake that it has to end like this.''

"This is what high school football should be about,'' Wildman said. "This is a healthy rivalry. This guy (Falconi) and I played against each other in high school, he was an assistant with Bill Gargano, I was with Wib (Forsythe). ... It's healthy. Other games you wouldn't see that, and that's the way it should be! I hope it continues, while I'm still here and after I'm gone.''

Notes: Initially, an announcement was made that Sharon had been awarded the win. "That's a killer, and I just told (his players) that it's suspended,'' Falconi said, "and (the announcement) says it's a loss and they were crushed. You know, what the hell. They can't make that a loss, it's impossible! ... In nine first-half carries, Parchman was held to 10 yards, but he raced for 64 yards on that other carry. Then in the second half, he was limited to rushes of 5, 3 and minus-2 yards before bursting for the 58-yarder. "That's what we've always told the great backs here at Sharon,'' Wildman related, "going back to the early 80s ... is great backs are patient. Just keep running hard, just be patient and things are gonna happen.'' ... The Steel Bowl Football Classic Traveling trophy is sponsored by DuFerco Co.