EASLEY — The Pickens/Easley rivalry will be on and off the field once again this year, leading up to a great game while benefiting a great cause.

The 2nd Annual Meals on Wheels Food Fight Bowl will be held before the annual Easley/Pickens game, Sept.11 at Easley High’s Brice field.

The Food Fight Bowl kicks off with a pep rally before the game in EHS’s ROTC area just outside Easley’s end zone.

“They’ll have a battle of the bands,” said Pickens County Councilman and PCMOW Board Chairman Sam Wyche. “The two bands will be there, the two teams’ cheerleaders. It’s a fun event, going back and forth.”

Around 7:30 p.m., the bands and the teams, lead by the Green Wave, will march into the stadium.

The two schools will once again vie for two trophies, the Food Fight Bowl trophy, which goes to the winning team, and the Ultimate Food Fight Trophy, which goes to the school that raises the most money for Pickens County Meals on Wheels.

All proceeds from the event go to help local people, Wyche said.

“The money all goes to the effort to provide a hot meal and some personal contact every day for shut-ins around Pickens County,” he said.

Last year’s first Food Fight Bowl was a huge success, bringing in nearly $9,000 for Pickens County Meals on Wheels.

“For every thousand dollars (raised), we feed one person for one full year,” Wyche said. “So that’s about 9 more people that we were able to serve, that we would have not been, if it were not for the Food Fight Bowl.

“That’s 9 important people,” he continued.

Pickens High School brought home both trophies, raising more than $5,000 for MOW, with Easley raising more than $3,000, Wyche said.

“They’re defending the title,” he said. “It’s a rotating trophy, so it goes back on the block as of 8 o’clock that night.

Pickens Mayor David Owens and Easley Mayor Larry Bagwell both have a personal stake in this year’s Food Fight, Wyche said.

“The team that wins the game will provide a Jersey for the other mayor to wear,” Wyche said. “He’ll put it on right after the game, after we present the trophies, and he’ll wear it all day to work Monday.”

McDonald’s will give away 100 of their new Angus burgers to one lucky fan.

“We’re going to draw it out kind of like the lottery, using ticket stubs, so save your ticket stub,” Wyche said.

Each school begins their fundraising with $1,000 in seed money, thanks to 2 local businesses.

Easley’s JMMS Corporation, a mold building company, has donated $1,000 to the Green Wave, and Blue Electric Cooperative is boosting the Blue Flame.

There are a number of special ways to help your team raise money for the cause, in addition to personal donations and community support.

“Each school has a limited edition of Food Fight Bowl T-shirts that they’re selling,” Wyche said. “That money will goal toward their goal.”

Each schools are also selling 1,500 McDonald’s gift certificates, and those proceeds will also go toward their goals, he said.

Anyone donating money directly to MOW should indicate if they’d like their donation to count toward the Blue Flame or Green Wave.

For more information on Food Fight Bowl fundraising, contact Pickens High School at 878-8730, Easley High School at 855-8150 or Pickens County Meals on Wheels at 878-7650.