For one it will be the last football game of a solid career that already includes one state championship and a state championship most valuable player award - a chance to equal the record of a famous sibling.
For the other it's a chance at redemption - a chance to add an elusive championship before embarking on a college career in the SEC.
Both Hoover quarterback Ross Wilson and Prattville quarterback Larry Smith are finalists for theAlabama Mr. Football Award, and both seniors will meet today at 3 p.m. as the No.1 Buccaneers (13-1) take on the No.2 Lions (14-0) in the AHSAA Class 6A state championship at Legion Field.
The expectations have always been high for Wilson, the younger brother of Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson, who led the Bucs to state championships in 2002 and 2003 and started in the only state championship game the Bucs have lost this century in 2001.
The younger Wilson is a few inches shorter and hesitant when it comes to talking about himself, very much the opposite of John Parker in his days as a Buc.
Where John Parker was a fiery, vocal presence on the field, Ross cut a more stoic presence and rarely showed emotion outside of the typical one-handed, fist pump touchdown celebration.
That is, until several weeks ago. In a second-round playoff game against Thompson in Alabaster, a game that featured two Warrior ejections and a near all-out brawl that had to be quelled by police.
Wilson took off on one of his trademark "Ross Wilson runs." With light-years of time to throw and nobody open, Wilson scrambled right, then left, then right again down the Warriors' sideline for a key first down - and got slammed to the turf by a Thompson linebacker. But Wilson got in the faces of some of the Thompson players, and he's been a different quarterback since.
Against Vestavia Hills in the state semifinals, Wilson played the game of his life.
Wilson completed 14-of-21 passes for 275 yards and four touchdowns and ran 13 times for 60 yards and another touchdown against the Rebels.
"Something John Parker always did was play well in the biggest games," Wilson said. "I try to play into that. You want to play your best in the biggest games of the year, and it doesn't get any bigger than state championships."
Seeking redemption:
For Prattville's Smith, getting back to the state championship - after getting a taste of Hoover in a loss in 2004 as a sophomore - has been the No.1 goal in his three years as a starter at Prattville.
"It was a bad feeling at first because we didn't play well," Smith said.
Smith, who was a sophomore then, threw three interceptions in the loss, and had negative rushing yards, partially due to being sacked three times.
Smith said he was "overanxious and inexperienced," but he made it clear he knows how to handle it this time around.
"Three years ago, when he started in the game, he felt like he had something to prove," Lions coach Bill Clark said. "He's really turned it up a notch, even in the playoffs. Larry's kind of the forefront guy. You want that guy to be like him. He appreciates his success, is humble, takes it in stride, brags on his lineman, does all the things you're supposed to do."
An outstanding talent on the field, Smith is as comfortable running the football as he is throwing, and said he doesn't hesitate to take off if all his receivers are covered downfield.
"If I see some running lanes, I'm going to take it," Smith said. "Watching film, quarterbacks have hurt them on the run a little bit, so if the pass isn't there, I'll just tuck it and run."
Off the field, Smith is one of the brightest students on the team. As a junior, Smith's grade point average of 3.8 was the highest on the team, and one of the reasons why he's committed to play football at Vanderbilt next year.
But for Wilson, who recently signed a scholarship to play baseball at Alabama, the state championship will be his last football game, something he admits is a little surreal.
"It doesn't really hit me right now," Wilson said. "But next year, especially if I come back and watch some games, it will be tough."
Two seniors - two quarterbacks - who both want the same thing on Saturday.
"I want to end on a good note," Smith said.
"You always want to go out on top," Wilson said. "And there's no better way than to win a state championship."
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