There’s nothing quite like a good, old-fashioned rivalry.

The Pittsburgh Steelers came out on top in a classic clash this weekend against the locally loathed Baltimore Ravens. The black and gold were certainly underdogs, but no matter the personnel, the Steelers and Ravens always seem to produce a tightly-contested game.

Around here, it doesn’t seem to get much better than Karns City and Moniteau, which has made my first two seasons covering Butler County area football all the more interesting.

Over the past two years, each school has been among the final eight teams still playing in Class AA and both were ousted by WPIAL powerhouse Aliquippa.

Although the destinations were the same, their paths were quite different.

In 2011, Moniteau was a veteran team loaded with superstars. Quarterback Kyle Armagost, running back Dustin Geagan and receiver Ethan Pry rewrote the Warriors’ record books on offense, while Joey Deal broke the team’s single-season sack mark.

The Warriors went undefeated through the regular season and rolled to the school’s first District 9 championship and state playoff victory.

In 2012, Karns City took an alternate trail.

With only a handful of seniors, Karns City persevered through a few disappointing defeats and numerous injuries to navigate its way to a District 9 title behind countless contributors on both sides of the ball, but none with particularly gaudy numbers.

Totally different makeup, but the year-to-year bragging rights were all the same.

However, the teams did share some qualities.

A preseason injury to standout running back Glenn Toy left the Gremlins without a go-to guy in the backfield, while Moniteau was tested when Armagost was hobbled by a knee injury early in the season.

For both teams, it might have been a blessing in disguise.

Karns City typically spreads the ball around, but did so even more this year out of necessity. It provided numerous Gremlins with valuable experience, which paid off during some gritty playoff victories.

Armagost’s injury forced the Moniteau quarterback to stay in the pocket for a couple of weeks and the Warriors’ passing game blossomed because of it.

Both adapted to their respective circumstances and evolved into more complete teams.

The most striking similarity? Both championship campaigns were a pleasure to witness.

Moniteau consistently dropped my jaw with its big-play ability, while the Gremlins continually found ways to come through in the clutch.

Karns City’s come-from-behind triumph over Kane in the D-9 title game was the most dramatic game I’ve ever witnessed firsthand. The Gremlins did it again the following week, prevailing in a nail-biter over Chestnut Ridge in the PIAA first round to earn a date with Aliquippa.

Like Moniteau’s fate the previous season, the Quips were just too much to handle.

I’m sure neither school particularly enjoyed watching the others’ success, evidenced by their head-to-head matchups.

Although the teams were on different levels in different years, neither school backed down from the other when they met on the field, resulting in a competitive game each time they played.

The anything-can-happen nature of a rivalry game is what makes them so special and even in a heated, backyard brawl, it’s important to appreciate your adversary.

Without them, sports just aren’t quite as fun.

Jason Orfao is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.