Football Game Preview: Foard Tigers vs. North Lincoln Knights

The Foard Tigers will venture away from home to challenge the North Lincoln Knights at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Foard has given up an average of 28.4 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

Foard is headed into the game out to prove that what happened against Newton-Conover on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. The Tigers lost 35-14 to the Red Devils. While losing is never fun, the Tigers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina football rankings (they are ranked 211th, while the Red Devils are ranked 77th).

Meanwhile, North Lincoln can bid farewell to their seven-game losing streak thanks to their game on Friday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 40-38 win over Bunker Hill. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Knights have posted since September 12, 2024.

Foard better keep an eye on Landen Agee. He was instrumental in North Lincoln's win, rushing for 183 yards and three touchdowns. That's the most rushing touchdowns Agee has posted since back in August. Danny Burns was another major influence, as he rushed for 67 yards and ran in a TD.

North Lincoln was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 298 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 153 rushing yards in four consecutive matchups.

On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to North Lincoln's defensive line and their five sacks. In that department, Angel Outlaw was the leader with two.

Foard's loss was their fourth straight at home, which dropped their record down to 3-6. As for North Lincoln, their win was their first in the conference, bumping their conference record up to 1-6 and their overall record up to 2-7.

Foard was dealt a bruising 42-7 defeat at the hands of North Lincoln in their previous matchup back in October of 2024. Can the Tigers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.