When first looking at this years football schedule, there is one major change that affects the entire outlook of the 2014 season: the team goes up against Free State on Friday, Sept. 19 — the third game of the year — instead of the usual final showdown.

This is the first time since the schools split in 1997 that the teams won’t face off for the final game of the season, which is going to take some time to get used to.

Junior cornerback Ivan Hollins was shocked when he saw this year’s schedule for the first time.

“I was very surprised,” Hollins said. “But I was more surprised when I saw Blue Valley West because I’ve never known us to play a team like them.”

Playing late in the season often meant that one of the teams had post-season aspirations that hinged on the final match-up, giving the game a sense of urgency. However, the players believe the matchup will still maintain the hype games have had in the past.

Hollins, who played in last year’s showdown and had a huge interception late in the game, believes the game will still have all the hype as usual.

“They’re still our crosstown rival, and it’s still a huge game — just a different week,” he said.

From a fan’s perspective, having the Free State game the third game of the year is definitely a weird twist.

Senior Langston Bush, an avid football fan and a LHS football supporter, agrees the game will remain just as important to those fans who tailgate before the game.

“I think the game will still be the most hyped game in the regular season,” Langston said. “But I do believe it would be better if it was the last one of the year.”

People like Langston want it to be the final game of the year because they believe it is at its most hyped when it is in that slot.

“I would much rather us play them the last game because it was always so memorable, it was the peak of the whole entire season,” Bush said. “Now our most hyped game of the season is the third game, so it’s really downhill as far as hype goes from there for us in the student section, but I do like that there are more home games than away games.”

Fans said they want FSHS to be the last game of the year, but they have no say in the new scheduling process.

With the new local districts KSHSAA created last year, LHS will now be in the fourth district with Olathe East, Olathe North and Olathe Northwest — probably the toughest district in the state.

The LHS football team will not play Free State for the last game again for at least the next two seasons, and likely even longer.

Players have different views, but they aren’t going to complain.

Junior lineman Diego Lopez said the focus has remained on the next team on the schedule — rather than the rivalry.

“It didn’t really change that much,” Lopez said.

In the end, there’s nothing anyone can do about the new schedule but go out and support the team at every game, but if Hollins could have his way, he would have wanted it the old way.

“It was such a good way to end the regular season with the packed crowds and everything else that came along with it,” he said.