Football Preview: Pike Road Patriots vs. St. Paul's Episcopal Saints
Pike Road has enjoyed a three-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will face off against the St. Paul's Episcopal Saints at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Pike Road is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They took their match with ease, bagging a 37-7 victory over Bessemer City. Given the Patriots' advantage in MaxPreps' Alabama football rankings (they are ranked 32nd, while the Tigers are ranked 97th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Pike Road's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Mike Jones, who rushed for 114 yards while picking up 7.1 yards per carry. Jones' rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fourth straight game with at least 101 rushing yards.
Pike Road was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 252 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 153 rushing yards in six consecutive games.
One reason for the win was Pike Road's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for five sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Gavan Rogers and Corey Tims, who racked up four sacks between them. Braylon Outlaw was another major factor on D, making six total tackles (1.0 for loss) and defending a pass in addition to snagging an interception which he returned one-yard for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, St. Paul's Episcopal never let their opponents score on Friday. They were the clear victor by a 26-0 margin over Helena.
St. Paul's Episcopal's victory was their sixth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 9-2. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 31.8 points per game. As for Pike Road, their win bumped their record up to 8-3.
Pike Road was able to grind out a solid victory over St. Paul's Episcopal in their previous meeting back in November of 2021, winning 29-17. The rematch might be a little tougher for Pike Road since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
