From brothers, to rivals. For the Kitchen brothers from Batesville that was the case last weekend.

Louisiana Tech vs. Southern Mississippi is a well-known rivalry for students who attend these two respected schools.

Before entering their game last Friday, Southern Miss held a five-game winning streak against Louisiana Tech, but that would soon change as Louisiana Tech would edge out the Golden Eagles late in the fourth and win by a score of 45-30.

For Rolonda and Ephraim Kitchen, Sr., however, it meant much more for them as they got to see their sons, Eriq and Ephraim Kitchen, Jr., face off against one another.

Eriq is currently a junior defensive lineman at Southern Mississippi and his brother, Ephraim, is a senior cornerback at Louisiana Tech. Both saw action last Friday as they faced off against each other.

It was the first time they have been on the field together since they were teammates at South Panola High School a few years ago.

The Kitchen house was split for this past weekend’s game as Ephraim, Sr., chose to root for Southern Miss while his youngest son, Elijah,  currently a sophomore at South Panola and a football Tigers football player, chose to root for Louisiana Tech. Mom Rolanda stayed neutral.

Cutlines:

Eriq Kitchen

Ephraim Kitchen, Jr.