The Athens Golden Eagles will venture away from home to face off against the Decatur Red Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Decatur took a loss in their last game and will be looking to turn the tables on Athens, who comes in off a win.
Athens is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They blew past Columbia 64-14 on Friday. The victory continues a trend for the Golden Eagles in their matchups with the Eagles: they've now won nine in a row.
Xavier Edwards
| 10/17/25 @ Columbia | 110 |
| 10/10/25 vs Hartselle | 24 |
| 10/03/25 vs Muscle Shoals | 2 |
| 09/26/25 @ Hazel Green | 64 |
| 09/19/25 @ Jasper | 74 |
| + 5 more games |
Xavier Edwards was nothing short of spectacular: he rushed for 110 yards and three touchdowns on only six carries. That's the most rushing yards he has posted since back in November of 2024. Jaxson Moore was another key player, rushing for 82 yards and one score on only six carries.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Athens was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 378 rushing yards. They are 2-1 when they've run for more than 200 yards.
Athens didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Landen Buttleman and Skyler Sammons. Athens is 2-1 when Buttleman posts one or more interceptions, but 2-3 otherwise.
Meanwhile, Decatur came up short against Cullman on Friday, falling 37-13. The Red Raiders have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Athens will have to contain Isaiah Allen as he made an impact in Decatur's last game. He rushed for 126 yards and a pair of TDs on only 11 carries. Allen's longest rush was for an impressive 68 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total.
Decatur's defeat dropped their record down to 2-7. As for Athens, the win got them back to even at 4-4.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the trenches. Athens has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 216.1 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Decatur, though, as they've been averaging only 95.3 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Everything came up roses for Athens against Decatur in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, as the squad secured a 49-20 victory. In that contest, the Golden Eagles amassed a halftime lead of 42-13, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
