Friday, 29 March 2024

Bass Bowl XII rivalry game planned Sept. 23

The Clear Lake High School football team poses with the Bass Bowl trophy after beating Kelseyville in the 2021 game. Courtesy photo.

LAKEPORT, Calif. — Lake County’s most intense and storied football rivalry game is this week.

The Knights of Kelseyville High School will be gunning to dethrone the defending Bass Bowl Champion Clear Lake Cardinal this Friday night starting at 7:30 p.m. at Don Owen Stadium in Lakeport in the 13th annual Bass Bowl.

Kelseyville holds a commanding lead in the series, 7 to 4, while Clear Lake is looking to win its third Bass Bowl in a row.

The home Cardinals will enter the game unbeaten with a 3-0 record.

Last Friday, the Cardinals beat Rio Vista 35-0, a team that beat Lower Lake 70-0 two weeks ago.

So far this year, the Cardinals are averaging over 31 points a game while giving up only 11.

The visiting team Knights bring a 0-3 record, and have been struggling so far this season, getting routed in their first two games, while losing by a point in their last game against a tough Sonoma Valley team.

The Cardinals will be clear favorites to keep the Bass Bowl trophy in Lakeport. But historically, all bets are off in this heated rivalry, as the Knights will not roll over to their rivals and likely play their best game of the year.

The Bass Bowl Trophy will be brought to the game by the Cardinals, and it will go home with the winning team. It has resided at Clear Lake High for the last 3 years, after the Cardinals won it in 2019 by beating Kelseyville 37-30. There were no games played in 2020 due to Covid.

The trophy sits on a totem pole that has the team mascots carved into it. The scores and victors of every Bass Bowl is plated onto the trophy itself.

The first ever Bass Bowl was played in 2010, with Kelseyville winning the inaugural game 34-20. The next two Bass Bowls were won by Clear Lake, followed by Kelseyville winning the next 6 games in a row, a streak broken in 2019.

The Bass Bowl was recognized in the book “The Dirty 30: America’s 30 Greatest High School Rivalries” by Tom Ward. The section on the Bass Bowl is entitled “Kiss My Bass”, of which the author acknowledges as one of the book's best chapters.

For the first seven years of the Bass Bowl, the organizers put together a series of fundraisers related to the game including a Bass Bowl Pageant, Kiss My Bass, and Bass Bowling. In addition, a Civil War era cannon was brought to the first six Bass Bowls and fired after every score. But opposition from school administration over liability and noise put an end to those elements of the Bass Bowl.

Local real estate brokerage Country Air Properties has sponsored the Bass Bowl every year since its inception, and this year they will be awarding the winning team $250 to help with equipment and travel expenses.

General admission is $5 and $3 for children. Tickets are still available, but it is advisable to get there early as it should be a full house.

Fans of both schools are encouraged to attend and wear their team colors: Black and cardinal red for the Cardinals, and black and orange for the Knights.

Upcoming Calendar

30Mar
03.30.2024 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Lakeport Community Cleanup Day
30Mar
03.30.2024 9:00 am - 11:00 am
Second annual Bunny Brunch
30Mar
03.30.2024 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Lake County poet laureate inauguration
31Mar
03.31.2024
Easter Sunday
31Mar
03.31.2024 1:15 pm - 1:45 pm
Lakeport Rotary Club Easter Egg Hunt
1Apr
04.01.2024
Easter Monday
1Apr
10Apr
15Apr
04.15.2024
Tax Day

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