Football Preview: Athens Academy Spartans vs. Banks County Leopards
The Athens Academy Spartans will take on the Banks County Leopards at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Athens Academy has six straight wins, Banks County has 11 straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Last Saturday, everything went Athens Academy's way against Oglethorpe County as Athens Academy made off with a 47-27 victory. Considering the Spartans have won five games by more than 19 points this season, Saturday's blowout was nothing new.
Athens Academy got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Keyon Standifer out in front who picked up 101 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Standifer got the majority of those receiving yards when he pulled down a pass and took off for a gain of 75 yards. Another back making a difference was Jamari Welch, who rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Athens Academy was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 265 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 158 rushing yards in eight consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Athens Academy's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. Standifer picked up that interception and then proceeded to rub salt in the wound by taking it back the other way for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Banks County came up short against Rabun County last Friday, falling 31-9. While losing is never fun, the Leopards can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Georgia football rankings (they are ranked 391st, while the Wildcats are ranked 155th).
Athens Academy pushed their record up to 6-0 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Banks County, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-5.
Everything came up roses for Athens Academy against Banks County in their previous matchup back in October of 2023, as the squad secured a 56-27 win. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Banks County's Aucy Jacobs, who rushed for 214 yards and two touchdowns. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Athens Academy still be able to contain Jacobs? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
