Butler travels to Mars to play a high school football game next Friday night.

There’s a unique element to that game.

It is the only high school football game this season pitting Butler County area teams against each other, not mandated by section or league play.

Only seven other local matchups exist all season: Moniteau-Karns City, Moniteau-Union, Butler-Seneca Valley, Mars-Knoch, Union-A-C Valley and Slippery Rock-Grove City.

That’s eight local football matchups out of 102 games area schools will be playing this fall.

Something seems wrong somewhere.

This is an odd county geographically in that teams play in three different districts. Six local teams play in the WPIAL (District 7), four compete in District 9 and two participate in District 10.

But non-conference games do exist.

For example, instead of Slippery Rock traveling to Dubois and Karns City heading up to Hickory, it’d be fun to see the Rockets and Gremlins play each other.

Butler plays Canon McMillan, Knoch plays Albert Gallatin instead of Butler and Knoch playing each other. Seneca Valley takes on McKeesport instead of Mars.

Yes, these teams are in different enrollment classifications and districts do dictate most of the schedule.

But we’re missing out on what could be a number of intriguing neighborhood games. And in this era of financial turmoil and budget cuts, wouldn’t more local games make sense?

Kudos to Mars in this area. The Planets have found a way to play neighboring Knoch, Butler and Pine-Richland during the regular football season.

This is not to suggest local scheduling would be easy. But the Mars schedule shows that it can be done.

And this does not have to be limited to football, by the way.

A weekend volleyball tournament involving any four-way conbination of Butler, Seneca Valley, Mars, Freeport and Knoch would be intriguing.

So, too, would a single-elimination boys or girls soccer tournament involving Butler, Seneca Valley, Knoch, Mars, Freeport, Karns City, Slippery Rock and Grove City.

Of course, the big schools would be favored. Play anyway. Upsets happen.

A preseason Butler County basketball tournament bracketing Butler, Seneca Valley, Mars, Knoch, Freeport, Karns City, Moniteau and Slippery Rock may not seem fair to some teams on paper.

But it would pack any gym you choose to play it in.

Traveling to out-of-state events is more exciting to the players.

Staying home to play a backyard game in front of a packed house makes more sense.