RIDGWAY — The game is on. But will the Gremlins be on their game?

One week after seeing teammate and friend Mason Martin air-lifted off the Diehl Stadium turf with serious injuries, Karns City heads to Ridgway for a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday night.

Both teams are 0-2 on the season.

Ridgway coach Mark Heindl said he expects the Gremlins to be an emotionally-charged football team for four quarters.

“I don’t see it any other way,” he said. “(KC) Coach (Joe) Sherwin always has his team well prepared and ready to go. As horrible a thing as what they’re going through right now, I don’t think it’s going to be any different.

“In fact, Karns City will be more charged up than it normally is. They want to win for that kid, turn their season around for him. We’ve been telling our kids all week, we have to meet the intensity their kids are bringing into this game.“

The Gremlins trailed 35-6 in the third quarter when quarterback Martin suffered his injuries. The game was halted at that point. KC opened the season with a high-scoring loss to DuBois Area at home. Martin threw for 107 yards and ran for 96 in that game.

Cole Johnston, a freshman, figures to step behind center for the Gremlins on Friday.

Sherwin admitted there was some inclination not to play Friday’s game.

“We thought about it,” he said. “We talked to the players prior to the prayer vigil Sunday and left it up to them. They wanted to play. They said Mason would want them to play.

“I wanted to make sure they were totally committed and focused. That’s the only way you can play football. And they are. The long bus ride will be good f or team unity. IT gets the kids away from things for a night, divert their attention a little bit.”

Ridgway returns starting quarterback Cam Larkin, who threw for 1,016 yards last year, but doesn’t return much else.

“We’re a really young team,” Heindl said. “Cam is back along with a couple of linemen, but all of other skilled people are new.”

The Elkers have lost to Port Allegany (40-0) and Saint Marys (28-14) to start the season.

“The Port Allegany game was a disaster,” Heindl said. “We suffered six turnovers and Port Allegany’s average starting position was our 25-yard line. Things did not go well for us.

“We played much better last week. Young teams make a lot of mistakes and we’re doing our best to correct those mistakes.”

Sherwin said Larkin is the biggest threat on Ridgway’s team.

“He can make plays, make things happen running or throwing the football,” Sherwin said. “We have a lot of inexperience. It’s going to be interesting to see how things turn out.

“Cole is a freshman, but he’s got a strong arm andf he can run a little bit. We need our upperclassmen to support hjim. We don’t have a lot of seniors. We need them to step up and lead right now.”

The Gremlins do have the support of the Martin family.

“We coaches went down to the hospital to visit Mason,” Sherwin said. “His mother and father were adamant. They want us to play.”