Preview: East Jackson Eagles vs. Union County Panthers
East Jackson has been on the road for four straight, but on Friday they'll finally head home. They will take on The Union County Panthers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Two weeks ago, East Jackson had to suffer through a rough 55-21 loss at the hands of Fellowship Christian. East Jackson was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 34-14.
Despite the defeat, East Jackson had strong showings from Quay Hill, who rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown, and Drew Richardson, who rushed for 129 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries. Richardson's longest rush was for an incredible 74 yards.
Meanwhile, after a string of four wins, Union County's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They ended up on the wrong side of a tough 55-35 walloping at the hands of Providence Christian Academy. This was one game where the offenses had no trouble playing at a high level.
The losing side was boosted by Caiden Tanner, who threw for 328 yards and two touchdowns while completing 73.3% of his passes. The team also got some help courtesy of Braylen Rader, who rushed for 62 yards and two touchdowns.
Having lost for the first time this season, East Jackson fell to 6-1. As for Union County, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-2.
Friday's match will pit two of the most dominant signal callers against one another: Richardson and Tanner. Richardson has put up some stellar numbers this year, and currently owns excellent season averages of 178.1 passing yards and no passing touchdowns per game this season. For his part, Tanner has averaged 238.1 passing yards and two passing touchdowns per game this season.
East Jackson came up short against Union County in their previous matchup back in October of 2022, falling 21-17. Will East Jackson have more luck at home instead of on the road?
