Football Recap: Fort Payne Beats Athens for Their Ninth Straight Win + How To Watch

It's playoff time, and Fort Payne had no trouble coming through when it counted. They strolled past the Athens Golden Eagles with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 38-23. This was payback for the Wildcats, who suffered a 29-28 loss the last time these two teams met.

Fort Payne's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Blake Griggs, who rushed for 47 yards and a pair of scores, and also threw for 87 yards and one touchdown on only eight passes. Kaiden Adams also helped out as he racked up 104 rushing yards.

They were just one part of a punishing run game: Fort Payne was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 267 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.

Athens' defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Xavier Edwards, who rushed for 138 yards and one TD on only ten carries, and Aidan Lovell, who gained 122 total yards. The Golden Eagles are 4-2 when Edwards posts 80 or more rushing yards, but 2-3 otherwise.

Wildcats

Previous Games

11/07/25 vs Athens	38-23
10/30/25 vs Pelham	28-21
10/24/25 @ Lee	49-24
10/17/25 vs Hazel Green	38-12
10/10/25 @ Gadsden City	30-17
+ 4 more games

The win (which was Fort Payne's ninth in a row) raised their record to 10-1. The victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 36.2 points over those games. As for Athens, the loss snapped their winning streak at three games and leaves them with a 6-5 record.

Looking ahead, Fort Payne will challenge Mountain Brook at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The Wildcats will need to watch out since the Spartans have now posted at least 31 points in their last four contests. Athens does not have any more games scheduled as of now.