Football Preview: Elbert County Blue Devils vs. Rabun County Wildcats
Elbert County hasn't had much luck against Rabun County recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Elbert County Blue Devils will face off against the Rabun County Wildcats at 7:30 p.m. Elbert County knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past three games -- so hopefully Rabun County likes a good challenge.
Last Friday, Elbert County and Athens Academy were almost perfectly matched up, but Elbert County suffered a 35-34 loss. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game on October 11th (33), the Blue Devils still had to take the loss.
Defeat or not, Elbert County got some senior leadership from Jacari Barnett and Jayvyn Hickman. Barnett rushed for 177 yards and three touchdowns, while Hickman rushed for 187 yards and a touchdown while picking up 7.2 yards per carry. That's the most rushing yards Hickman has posted since back in November of 2023.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Elbert County was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 364 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 185 rushing yards in five consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Rabun County was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Friday as they fell 34-28 to Athens Academy.
Lake Evans put forth a good effort for the losing side as he rushed for 88 yards and a touchdown.
Elbert County now has a losing record at 4-5. As for Rabun County, their loss dropped their record down to 6-3.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Elbert County has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 234.3 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Rabun County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 262.4. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Elbert County was able to grind out a solid victory over Rabun County when the teams last played back in October of 2023, winning 21-9. Will Elbert County repeat their success, or does Rabun County have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
