One of the state's newest -- and oldest -- college football rivalries fires up again on September 6, as Knox College and Eureka College compete in the annual Lincoln Bowl. The two colleges first met on the gridiron in 1893. The series, which alternates locations every year, was inaugurated three years ago at Knox to celebrate the two colleges' ties to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln.

This year's game, which kicks off at 1 p.m., Saturday, September 6, on Stisser Field at the Knosher Bowl on the Knox campus in Galesburg, will feature free inflatable games and face-painting for kids. Admission to the football game and entertainment is free.

The winning team receives The Lincoln Trophy, a bust of the 16th president created specifically for the rivalry and donated by former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar. Eureka has won the first two games in the Lincoln Bowl series, while Knox holds an overall record of 16-7-1 against Eureka.

The inscribed trophy notes that Lincoln visited both colleges in the 1850s. Lincoln spoke at Eureka in 1856 on behalf of John Charles Fremont, the Republican Party's very first candidate for President of the United States. Two years later, in 1858, Lincoln debated Stephen Douglas at Knox in the race for a United States Senate seat. Knox's Old Main is the only original site that remains from the Lincoln-Douglas Debates.

"Abraham Lincoln is a role model for competitors everywhere -- followed the rules, graceful in defeat, humble in victory," said Chad Eisele, Knox College athletic director. "Lincoln also loved playing with his kids and watching them have fun. I expect they'd all have a great time September 6 at the Knosher Bowl."

In addition to the free carnival games, student volunteers at the Knosher Bowl will distribute free souvenir Lincoln fans on behalf of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation. The fans provide discounts for visitors to several historic sites around Illinois.

• Related: Knox College Prairie Fire Football

Prairie Fire Football, 2013 in review. Full-screen photos with captions and credits are available in an album at the Knox College Flickr channel