Football Game Preview: Essex Trojans vs. Grayson County Blue Devils

Essex is on a four-game streak of home wins, while Grayson County is on a five-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Essex Trojans will host the Grayson County Blue Devils at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. The two teams have allowed few points on average, (Essex: 4.5, Grayson County: 14) so any points scored will be well earned.

Essex is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Saturday. They were the clear victor by a 30-8 margin over Altavista. The Trojans might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 11 games by 22 points or more this season.

Meanwhile, Grayson County has relied on a stalwart defense averaging 14 points allowed per game, but that average took a hit on Saturday. They managed a 40-34 win over Rye Cove. The victory almost wasn't to be: the Blue Devils were down 22-7 in the second quarter.

Essex better keep an eye on Maverik Goad. He was instrumental in Grayson County's win, throwing for 283 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 11.8 yards per attempt, and also rushing for 66 yards and two touchdowns on only eight carries. The dominant performance gave Goad a new career-high in passing touchdowns.

Grayson County wouldn't let Rye Cove keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Grayson County can thank Xayden Brown and Preston Jones for forcing both of them. Brown has been hot recently, having also posted five or more total tackles the last three times he's played.

Essex's win bumped their record up to 13-1. As for Grayson County, their victory bumped their record up to 10-3.