Football Preview: Toombs County Bulldogs vs. Southwest Patriots
The Toombs County Bulldogs will square off against the Southwest Patriots at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The timing is sure in Toombs County's favor as the team sits on six straight wins at home (dating back to last season) while Southwest has been banged up by three consecutive losses on the road.
Toombs County will roll into the matchup after a wild two-game stretch: they only put up seven points last Friday, then bounced right back against Swainsboro on Friday. Toombs County breezed by Swainsboro to the tune of 44-8. The Bulldogs might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won six matches by 36 points or more this season.
A big part of Toombs County's victory came down to the chemistry between Tj Stanley and his top target Gavin Fletcher. Stanley threw for 203 yards and two touchdowns on only 19 passes while Fletcher picked up 90 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Toombs County was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 238 rushing yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Swainsboro only rushed for 62.
Meanwhile, Southwest beat East Laurens 20-7 on Friday.
Steve Robinson continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 103 yards and a touchdown on only 12 carries, while also throwing for 108 yards and a touchdown while completing 71.4% of his passes. A healthy portion of that aerial production (81 yards to be exact) went to Jamarea Watkins, who also brought in a receiving touchdown.
On the other side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Southwest's defense and their 6.5 sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Rinaldo Callaway and Marquis Hutchings, who racked up 5.5 sacks between them. Hutchings is becoming a predictor of Southwest's success: when he posts at least two sacks the team is 2-1 (and 2-5 when he doesn't). Another thorn in East Laurens' side was Jordan Gooden, who picked up a sack, made five total tackles (4.0 for loss), and defended a pass.
Southwest's win bumped their record up to 4-6. As for Toombs County, their victory bumped their record up to 8-1.
Friday's game might be decided in the on the ground. Toombs County has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 242.4 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Southwest struggles in that department as they've been averaging 165.5. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Toombs County against Southwest when the teams last played back in November of 2023, as the squad secured a 64-6 win. In that matchup, Toombs County amassed a halftime lead of 36-6, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
