Mountain Valley rivalry game has Bernards hosting Delaware Valley, with No. 4 Mountaineers looking solid early on

There will be a lot going on at Olcott Field in Bernardsville Friday night, where No. 4 Bernards will host Delaware Valley in the Big Central Game of the Week, presented by Bellamy & Son Paving.

To begin with, it’s a battle of 2-0 teams, with the Mountaineers having beaten Cranford and Hillside, the Terriers having beaten Metuchen and South Plainfield.

You can add in a big rivalry game between the schools, rejuvenated in the Big Central, and also Bernards’ 27-game regular season win streak, which is the longest such active streak in the state right now.

But don’t ask a single player about either.

It’s not about that, they’ll say. It’s just about getting better every day, and building depth in a program that has always had great numbers, but saw a little dip due to the smaller-than-usual size of the school’s sophomore class.

But many key players are back, including sack-machine Thomas Diemar at defensive end, and major contributors on offense like returning quarterback Nolan Walsh, receiver Sean Arcelay and runinngback Logan Stevens, only the last of which is a senior.

You can hear Friday night’s game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with pregame at 6:45 and kickoff at 7 pm. Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel have the call; click here to listen.