'100 Years of the 'Crosstown Clash' Barr vs Walnut Football Rivalry' - The GIPS Cast, Ep. 064

100 years of a legendary football rivalry. 


It’s a rare thing to hit such a milestone.  And even more rare is the opportunity to celebrate the moment when it arrives.


The episode will be a bit different from our typical programming, but we're excited to to share this historic narrative. 


Barr and Walnut Middle Schools have been meeting annually for a “Crosstown Clash” football game for 100 years straight.  And on October 16th, 2025, we'll be celebrating the milestone at the annual game.


To help us commemorate the rich history of Bulldogs vs Wildcats on the gridiron, we’ve enlisted the talents of “The Voice of the Islanders” himself, Brian Gallagher.  He’ narrates the historical account on this episode tracing through the storied Grand Island rivalry.


Peppered throughout the narrative will be a couple familiar voices, Mr. Brian Kort, and Mr. Rod Foley, sharing their insights about the famed Barr vs Walnut match-up.


We’re grateful to have such a rich history here at GIPS.


Catch the storied 100-year history of the Barr vs Walnut 'Crosstown Clash' Football Game.

Listen to the latest episode above or subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform.

(Transcript may be found below the episode player.)

(Special thanks to Greg Mays of Suiting Up Varsity for his contributions to the narrative.)

#WeAreGIPS  
 

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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:

Podcast Intro  00:00

This is Grand Island Public Schools podcast, and these are our stories. We are learners. We are educators in teaching hearts as well as minds. We are 10,000 diverse voices, and we're changing the world together, one classroom at a time. These are our stories. We are GIPS. We are GIPS. Somos que peh ese. We are GIPS. Somos, GIPS. We are GIPS, and this is 'The GIPS Cast'.

 

Mitchell Roush  00:30

Welcome back to the GIPS cast, a conversation based podcast exploring the voices of Grand Island Public Schools in Nebraska. I'm your host. Mitchell Roush, Communications Director here at GIPS, and as always, I'm grateful to bring to you new stories from all corners of our district, because here we're driven by our mission of every student every day, a success. Now we've got 100 years of a legendary football rivalry. It's a rare thing to hit such a milestone, and even more rare, is the opportunity to celebrate that moment when it arrives. So our episode today will be a bit different from our typical programming, but I'm excited to share this narrative with you. Barr and walnut middle schools have been meeting annually for a cross town clash football game for 100 years straight, and on October 16, we'll be celebrating that milestone at the annual game to help us commemorate the rich history of the Bulldogs versus the Wildcats on the gridiron, we've enlisted the talents of the voice of the islanders himself, Brian Gallagher, he'll be narrating this historical account on this episode, tracing through the storied Grand Island rivalry of Barr versus walnut, and peppered throughout the narrative will be a couple of familiar voices, Mr. Brian court and Mr. Rod Foley, sharing their insights on the famed matchup. We're grateful to have such a rich history here at GIPS. So without further ado, the 100 year history of the Crosstown clash, Barr versus walnut football game.

 

Brian  02:17

Capacity crowds gathered for the Crosstown clash. It was always played by ninth graders, just freshmen, at least for a while, then the ultimate face off became a battle of seventh and eighth graders. Either way, it was spectacular, and bragging rights were always on the line. The Grand Island rivalry between walnut junior high and Barr Junior High is arguably the most tradition filled and historic rivalry in Nebraska prep history, and this year, the legacy continues as the Barr versus walnut, annual football matchup, the cross town clash celebrates its centennial anniversary, 100 years since 1925 the Barr Middle School Bulldogs has squared off against the walnut Middle School Wildcats on the gridiron each year for friendly competition and hometown pride.

 

Brian Kort  03:18

Brian Kort, Rcruitment Retention Coordinator Grand Island Public Schools. So about 25 years ago, I started teaching at Barr. I was a math teacher, and I coached football and basketball for three years before I went into administration there, and was there for 14 years as an AP and principal. And then since then, the last seven or so years I've been over here in central office. So, yeah, I spent 17 years at Barr Middle School, either as a teacher, most of those years as a administrator. Well, I think what it says, it's been around a long time. I think it's kind of a staple of Grand Island. I think anybody that went to Barr or walnut, whether they were probably an athlete or not, might have a story about the bar walnut, especially as you get back, if you talk to people, maybe from the 70s, 80s, early 90s, back when it was, you know, freshmen at that time, was a big game. I know they played it at Senior High. And then when it became the eighth grade game, when we went to a middle school, and ninth graders went to the high school in the early 90s, then it, you know, became the eighth grade game. And so I think there's a lot of good memories from it. I think it's one of those. It's a pride game. Kids are friends. They play a lot of other activities, especially outside of school, now, on traveling teams, but yet, for that couple hours on that Thursday evening, it's, it's a pride game. That's how we looked at three years I was there. The coaches had all been there years, and that week was it's always ramped up a little bit, and I think it's at both schools, because you wanted to win that. And I was fortunate. We went three and, oh, during my three years. So I had bragging rights all three years. But and the other part was, you know, Dan trout, longtime teacher and coach here in. Uh, Grand Island Public Schools and and at Barr Middle School, he was coaching at that time, so I got to hear a lot of the old war stories from him, you know, after practice or during that week about the bar walnut rivalry. And I also coach basketball with him, and we during the week of Barr & Walnut. It was the same way with that as well. We always played the game at Grand Island Senior High, and that's just kind of special for our eighth graders to go up there, whether I was, you know, coaching at the time, or as an administrator. That was just special. It's been great. I'm excited about the matchup. I'm going to be there for it. Just enjoy it. I hope it's a great game, and hope everybody has great memories from whenever their time was, that they played in it, their child played in it, or whatever it was.

 

Brian  05:50

It began with an educational shift, the Grand Island Public Schools from an eight four model, where the elementary schools included grades K through eight, and the high school was four grades to a 633, model, with a junior high level between elementary and high school for grades seven, eight and nine, GIPS opened Barr Junior High in January 1924 and walnut Junior High in the fall of 1925 students living on the south side of The Union. Pacific main line would go to bar. Students to the North would attend walnut their games would decide which side of the tracks held bragging rights for that season. In October of 1925 the schools met on the athletic Park football field near modern day pier Park and played to a 0-0 tie. A rivalry was born. Barr won a November rematch, but walnut would claim nine of the next 11 games. Strings like that were common throughout the rivalry, but they never dimmed the fire walnut often twice as big as Barr in the early years. Dominated the first decades, but Barr ran off big win streaks and eras of dominance in the 60s, 70s and 80s, it never made it less of a big game. In the 1930s the football match up took on many of the trappings of a varsity game. In 1935 the contest was moved to Armistice Day as a part of the community wide celebration, both schools provided bands that led a parade through town to the ball field. Like any rivalry, this one produced surprises and upsets. Barr took the 1936 game 12 nothing to break a long Wildcat win streak. Walnut hadn't lost any game in four years, and hadn't lost to another ninth grade squad since Barr last beat them in 1927 upsets would dot the series record in both football and basketball throughout the years, as each played spoiler many times. In 1942 the game was shifted to the biggest, big game football Day, Thanksgiving, Barr won 12 nothing, and it was a sign of great times to come in Islander athletics, the purple and gold would dominate Nebraska prep athletics in the late 40s, and it was the power from the combination of bar and walnut athletes that did it. Hall of Famer and Cornhusker legend Bobby Reynolds came from Barr, but his sidekicks in those multiple football and basketball state title years, Bob kinnickram and Dale Toft were walnut Wildcats in junior high. That pattern can be seen through the history of the rivalry. When Grand Island football spent most of the 50s and 60s in the top 10, it was with all Staters like walnut Wildcats Mike Lee, John Siebold and Darrell Pinkston, along with Barr Bulldogs such as John Sanders and Randy butts. The GI and Nebraska football stars of the 70s and 80s were Barr's Harry grimminger and Tom Rathman and walnut's Jeff Finn when Title Nine put the girls in the game. Islanders. Success came behind Kelly Benson and Lynn Miller of walnut and Cindy Smith of Bar. Bar and walnut produced that amazing run of athletes because of the competitive fires of the rivalry and some excellent and incredibly stable coaching staffs. Al kinker began coaching football and basketball at bar in 1953 and retired after notching his 100th ninth grade basketball win in 1970 Gaylord Pete Peterson guided the walnut round ballers from 1968 to 1996 Larry Dillon directed walnut football practices for over 30 years, beginning in 1972 for many of those years, he faced Bill Goa on the Bulldog sideline. Goa LED bar from 1961 to 1992 bar basketball was under the tutelage of coach Dan trout. From 1969 until 2007 many of them were assisted by coaches who spent a day. Decade plus at their school. What High School rivalry can boast such long coaching tenures, the rivalry produced great games and great upsets. The two schools were so evenly matched that the basketball finale often clinched a Tri Cities or Great Plains conference championship and undefeated season like it did for walnut in 1966 and Barr in 1970 other times, it would be an upset that spoiled such an effort like walnuts win in 1946 or Barr's in 1969 the football series produced a dozen contests that ended in ties or overtime. In 1983 a crowd of over 3000 watched Barr win 2820 in five overtimes, the games have historically been a big event in Grand Island. Just as those early games were moved to prime scheduling spots on Armistice Day and Thanksgiving later, football contests were moved to Friday nights under the lights of the new memorial stadium in the late 40s, full page newspaper ads in the 50s would advertise the game as the football classic of the year. The gritters filled Memorial Stadium for a 00 tie in 1965 and 4000 paid to see the 1976 bar 14 to nothing win, despite what the local paper called Raw weather. In 1984 krgi started broadcasting the football games on the radio. The Barr versus walnut ninth grade rivalry shifted due to educational updates. In the fall of 1997 the ninth grades from both schools shifted to the senior high as both schools Barr and walnut became sixth through eighth grade middle schools, the rivalry lives on at the seventh and eighth grade levels in the same fashion on the field of grand Ellen's Memorial Stadium. Hometown pride on the line Nebraska has never matched the passion and consistency of the ninth grade version of the bar or walnut rivalry at the high school level, it seems strange to say that games played between ever changing casts of freshmen composed the most historic rivalry in the state. But it's true, the schools played football 101 times from 1995 to 1996 walnut, 6330 and eight and clashed on the boys' basketball maples, 140 times. Walnut, 8157 with three unknown results. No varsity rivalry approaches those numbers and can match the year after year intensity and competition that the two junior highs produced. And so the rivalry lives on.

 

Rod Foley  12:42

Hi, my name is Rod Foley. I'm the current principal at Walnut middle school, and I have been here since 2001 the fact that you think about the, you know, walnuts really a cornerstone for the entire community, right? I mean, it, it symbolizes a lot of what our community is and is about, and, and more than half of the people who are you know, from this city find their home and roots it through walnut at some point. So there's a connection there that you have with the community that is just, it's pretty comforting, and it's very it's very humbling to have been a part of that. Part of it may come down to that bar walnut rivalry, right? I mean, there's they would they like to differentiate themselves as Wildcats do from the Bulldogs. And so I think that pride of being part of that is always something that is just part of who they are, as part of their DNA. As a Grand Island native, one of my kids ended up going to Barr and my probably one of the highlights was the then that bar walnut rival is he ended up intercepting a pass and sealing the bar win over walnut when he was an eighth grader, and that Barr vs Walnut rivalry. So it was kind of fun to see. And you know, for 10 seconds, I'm I'm cheering for my kid and and in the stands, the kids are looking at me, like, what are you doing? I'm like, That's my own son. I have to cheer for him, but I don't want him to beat you guys. I just want him to beat you guys. And so it was a, it was a funny moment, but as the walnut principally, I feel a little guilty that he ended up going to Barr so. But that was a, that was a, that's a fun memory in that whole piece. I will say that, you know, when I first got here, especially in that you talk about that rivalry, our athletic teams were so good. I think we were conference champs in every sport for like, three straight years. I mean, we were, there was a point where they're in the early 2000s we were just pretty much dominated. And I it was just so impressive to see just the fan base and the the number of students who came to games to support, and it's fun to see how different generations, as they've gone through continue to find value and and be and pride in those in those athletic events and and it not just that, but just all the things that have happened here over the course of. The years, whether it's the spelling bees or the geography bees, I mean, just the things that kids do, that participate, that help them be part of that, that community that is, that is walnut is something special.

 

Brian  15:18

On October 16, 2025 the Bulldogs and Wildcats will celebrate its 100th anniversary. Seventh and eighth grade student athletes will take the field of Memorial Stadium at Grand Allen Senior High. Meeting on the gridiron for the 100th straight year. Is seminal for the students facing off on the gridiron. Perhaps it means a noteworthy highlight of a middle school career, yet also a meaningful contribution to a larger moment, a meaning to something bigger for the community. Ask any of the bar or walnut coaches and staff, and they'll tell you, the Bulldogs versus the Wildcats is bigger than us, and that's what makes it special. And in true Grand Island football fashion, no story captures the spirit of the friendly rivalry than the end of the game tradition led by former Grand Allen Senior High football coach Jeff Tomlin. For over 20 years, Coach Tomlin led the Islanders as the Head Football Coach through his tenure, he treasured the annual Barr versus walnut football matchup hosted at Senior High. As the story goes, Coach Tomlin would bring his islanders team to the game after practice to support the young student athletes competing. The high schoolers would inevitably split up gathering towards the team sides for the schools they attended as middle schoolers. Barr on one side, walnut on the other, cheering throughout the game, the islanders made it known they were hyping up the next generation of gridiron competitors. At game's end, Coach Tomlin would gather all the players in midfield, bar Bulldogs, walnut Wildcats and grand Allen Senior High islanders would gather together in a circle, take a knee and spend their last moments together on the field of the famed rivalry, supporting each other. Coach Tomlin shared one simple message with them all. We're teammates now. We're all Islanders. We went from Bulldogs versus Wildcats to now we're all Islanders. To be a part of something this storied, this exciting, is a rare thing for our student athletes, coaches, school staff, families and the Grand Island community. 100 Years of friendly football matchups means one thing, we're all part of something bigger, and we're a part of it together.

 

Mitchell Roush  17:38

100 years of Bulldogs versus Wildcats. We love to see it. Thank you so much, listeners for joining us here at the GIPS cast. We wouldn't be here without you. If you enjoyed this episode, or if you enjoy this show, we would love it if you gave us a rating or a review on your favorite podcast platform. So wherever you listen to us, Apple podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, wherever it may be, click the stars and give us a quick rating. It'll help other people discover us along the way. And as always, our friendly reminder, check out gips.org, that's www.GIPS.org our district website that is our hub for all of our stories, resources, information that you need from Grand Island Public Schools. Thank you again, listeners for joining us here on 'The GIPS Cast'. We'll be coming back at you soon with some more great stories from our district.

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