FARMVILLE — The tension between two Eastern Plains Conference football equals has had a week to marinate, stimulated by a jump in the AP prep football poll and the completion of a successful out-of-conference slate.

The lines have been painted, the field manicured, as two of the best teams in Class 2-A mentally prepare to take the field in what is widely considered one of the premier high school football matchups on tap for tomorrow.

Last season, Washington made a statement in its inaugural Eastern Plains opener, making a defensive example of Farmville Central with a 20-6 victory, the first of five en route to a conference championship.

But things are slightly different in 2014. So far, it’s been the Jaguars who have shifted the spotlight 40 miles down U.S. Highway 264 with a 6-0 record. Just three years removed from a winless season, head coach Scott Gardner has resurrected a program, taking a team from near irrelevance to title contention.

“Being 6-0, you deserve the attention,” said Washington head coach Sport Sawyer. “They’re scoring around 50 points a game and holding people to under two scores a game, so they deserve the attention and it makes tomorrow a marquee high school football matchup.”

In a showcase featuring two favorites to take the conference championship, this game carries more weight than its label may imply. A win puts one team a step ahead, moves it to the front of the line, bolstering playoff aspirations. It should also factor into the AP poll and give the winner a viable case to claim a top-three spot.

The memory of last season’s two-score Pam Pack victory may still haunt Jaguars fans and graduates, but certainly not the current team, which is piecing together a resume worthy of regional attention.

Yet again, so is the Pam Pack. While Farmville Central leans on its high-octane offense to outscore opponents, Sawyer’s squad relies on a much more defensive approaching to winning. Boasting a 5-1 record this season, its only loss coming to the defending 3-A state champion Havelock Rams, Washington hasn’t allowed a point in over 100 minutes of play.

“Our defense has pitched two shutouts in a row, so you have a strong defense going against a high-powered offense,” Sawyer said. “Something is going to give somewhere. It’s exciting that we’re looking to shut them out and they’re looking to score points.”

Interestingly enough, the best players on the field happen to be a running back for Washington and a linebacker for Farmville Central. For the Jaguars, senior Edward Davis registers at 6-0, 224, leads his team in tackles and is shaping up to be a touted collegiate prospect. On Monday, Davis was also selected to the 2014 Shrine Bowl, the only player on both teams to earn the honor.

Washington senior Markel Spencer goes about football a different way, humbly avoiding regional attention — a quiet producer so to speak. After putting on some size this offseason, the scat back turned bruiser sits at exactly 4,000 yards for his career. This year, he’s crested the 100-yards on the ground in five of six games, including a 157-yard performance against Havelock.

Sawyer is still waiting for that big 200-yard performance from his star running back, but admits without the consistent play of guard Neill Jennings and the rest of the offensive line, the Pam Pack would not be where it is today.

Experience versus confidence, defense versus offense, No. 8 versus No. 4 — this matchup goes without a clear-cut favorite. And the result can potentially change the landscape of 2-A football.

“I think it can be one of the best teams I’ve ever coached when it’s all said and done, but it’s not yet,” Sawyer said. “We’re 5-1 and heading in a good direction, but we have a tough conference stretch going and then the playoffs.”

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Farmville.