John's Journal
Final Class 1A Volleyball Rankings10/24/2018
From the Minnesota Volleyball Coaches Association.

CLASS 1A
1. Minneota (14) - 210
2. Waterville-Elysian-Morristown - 193
3. Mayer Lutheran - 179
4. Wabasso - 164
5. Pine River-Backus - 155
6. Mabel-Canton - 135
7. Ada-Borup-West - 121
8. BOLD - 118
9. Windom - 76
10. Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa - 72
Others Receiving Votes: Carlton - 19, Caledonia - 12,
Teams only appearing on one ballot: Yellow Medicine East, New Life Academy
Traveling Trophies: Paddles, Axes, Bells, Jugs, Sand Bags And More 10/24/2018
On Oct. 14 in this space, I wrote about a football game between Chatfield and St. Charles. The story included information about the Armistice Day Trophy, which those teams have been playing for since 1947.

Seeing that trophy on the field in St. Charles reminded me of some of the other great traveling trophies I have seen during many years of writing about high school football in Minnesota. The Hammer. The Milk Jug. The Battle Axe. At least nine rivalry games are known as the Battle for the Paddle.

There are at least two Little Brown Jugs, one Victory Jug, one Brown Jug and at least two trophies known simply as the Jug. Several trophies are named after highways or streets.

I asked folks who follow me on Twitter and are plugged into the MSHSL Facebook page to tell me about their favorite football traveling trophies. The response was immediate and powerful. If you haven’t seen the many photos of trophies that have been posted on the MSHSL Facebook page, you really should because it is quite amazing.

People also have shared some interesting, weird, sometimes goofy stories of how the trophies came to be. Here are a few samples…

--Plainview-Elgin-Millville football coach Kevin Lamb and Lake City coach Trevor Narum were college roommates in Winona, living on Franklin Street. So, their teams play for the Franklin Street Helmet.

--After football players from Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton and St. Clair helped fill and set sand bags when their communities suffered from flooding in 2016, the Sand Bag Trophy was born.

--Proctor and Hermantown play for The Hammer, a giant wooden hammer that is a symbol of the railroad history of the two towns.

--St. Charles and Lewiston-Altura play for TWO trophies. In the mid-2000s coaches from both schools thought it would be fun to have a traveling trophy. Each team created a trophy (unbeknownst to the other school). Lewiston-Altura decorated a golden hammer with the handle half orange and half red, while St. Charles created the Highway 14 Sign.

--In Rochester, the football teams from Century, Mayo and John Marshall battle for The Addington Jug. The school that beats the team possessing the jug takes it home and paints it in their school colors.

--Luverne and Pipestone have played for the Battle Ax (pictured) since 1957. The ax head is red on one side and green on the other, representing the schools’ colors. And for good (and hilarious) measure, the sophomore teams play for the Hatchet and the ninth-grade teams play for the Butter Knife.

Here’s a list of football traveling trophies that has been compiled based on input from so many of you. This is in no way a complete list and some of these rivalries are no longer current. But what a fun project!

FOOTBALL TRAVELING TROPHIES

Addington Jug

Rochester Century, Rochester Mayo and Rochester John Marshall

Armistice Day Trophy
Chatfield vs. St. Charles

Axe
Minnesota School for the Deaf vs. Wisconsin School for the Deaf
Bemidji vs. Moorhead

Bay Bell
Minnetonka vs. Wayzata

Babe’s Bell
Bemidji vs. Brainerd

Battle Ax
Luverne vs. Pipestone (Hatchet and Butter Knife)

Battle for the Apple
Apple Valley vs. Eastview

Battle of the Bell
Houston vs. Lanesboro

Battle for the Paddle
Rogers vs. Elk River
Cambridge-Isanti vs. St. Francis
Hawley vs. Barnesville
Annandale vs. Litchfield
Anoka vs. Champlin Park
Medford vs. Bethlehem Academy
Littlefork-Big Falls vs. Bigfork
Detroit Lakes vs. Peham
Jackson County Central vs. Windom

Big Cat

Lakeville North vs. Lakeville South

Block
Irondale vs. Spring Lake Park

Bloomington City Trophy
Bloomington Jefferson vs. Bloomington Kennedy

Brown Jug
Waconia vs. Chaska

Bumper
Foley vs. Little Falls

Football
Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta vs. Minnewaska

Franklin Street Helmet
Plainview-Elgin-Millville vs. Lake City

Golden Helmet

Kittson County Central vs. Grygla

Golden Football
Mahnomen/Waubun vs. Ada-Borup/West

Hammer
Proctor vs. Hermantown (pictured)
Lewiston-Altura vs. St. Charles

Hatchet
St. Paul Harding vs. St. Paul Johnson

Helmet
Tracy-Milroy-Balaton vs. Murray County Central
St. Charles vs. Dover-Eyota

Highway 2 Road Sign Trophy
Fosston vs. Bagley

Highway 14 Sign
St. Charles vs. Lewiston-Altura

Highway 53 Bridge Battle
Virginia vs. Eveleth
Highway 99 Border Battle
Nicollet vs. Cleveland

37th Avenue Street Sign
Minneapolis Edison vs. Columbia Heights

Jug
Mankato East vs. Mankato West
Greenway vs. Grand Rapids

Little Brown Jug
Fairmont vs. Blue Earth Area
Zumbrota-Mazeppa vs. Kasson-Mantorville
Cannon Falls vs. Kenyon-Wanamingo
Moose Lake/Willow River vs. Barnum

Minute Man
North St. Paul vs. Tartan

Morrison County Milk Jug
Royalton vs. Upsala/Swanville Area

Musket
St. Paul Central vs. St. Paul Highland Park

Nickel
Roseau vs. Warroad

Old Highway 169 Blvd Trophy
Jordan vs. Belle Plaine

Old Oak Bucket
Fairmont vs. Jackson County Central

Sandbag Trophy
St Clair vs. Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton

Sledgehammer
Rogers vs. Monticello
Caledonia vs. Plainview-Elgin-Millville

Stump Trophy
Crosby-Ironton vs. Aitkin

Tractor Trophy
Farmington vs. Northfield

Victory Jug
Chaska vs. Chanhassen

Wedge
Norwood Young America vs. Sibley East

See more photos on the MSHSL Facebook page.

Follow John on Twitter: @MSHSLjohn
Class 3A Volleyball Rankings10/18/2018
From the Minnesota Volleyball Coaches Association.

CLASS 3A
1. Champlin Park (10) - 163
2. Lakeville North - 153
3. Eagan (1) - 144
4. Lakeville South - 134
5. Minnetonka - 115
6. Stillwater - 111
7. East Ridge - 99
8. Shakopee - 81
9. Northfield - 70
10. North St. Paul - 58
Others Receiving Votes: Moorhead - 12
Teams only appearing on one ballot: Forest Lake, Wayzata
Class 2A Volleyball Rankings10/18/2018
From the Minnesota Volleyball Coaches Association.

CLASS 2A
1. Stewartville (10) - 150
2. Kasson-Mantorville - 140
T-3. Marshall - 124
T-3. Concordia Academy - 124
5. North Branch - 107
6. Academy of Holy Angels - 84
7. Belle Plaine - 82
8. Kenyon-Wanamingo - 73
9. Watertown-Mayer - 71
10. Sauk Centre - 60
Others Receiving Votes: St. Cloud Cathedral - 22, Norwood-Young America - 13
Class 1A Volleyball Rankings10/18/2018
From the Minnesota Volleyball Coaches Association.

CLASS 1A
1. Minneota (14) - 210
2. Waterville-Elysian-Morristown - 192
3. Mayer Lutheran - 181
4. Wabasso - 163
5. Pine River-Backus - 152
6. Mabel-Canton - 135
7. Ada-Borup-West - 123
8. BOLD - 115
9. Windom - 80
10. Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa - 51
Others Receiving Votes: Caledonia - 32, Carlton - 19
Teams only appearing on one ballot: Yellow Medicine East, New Life Academy