Preview: Cartersville Hurricanes vs. Eastside Eagles
Cartersville has enjoyed the comforts of home their last two games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will square off against the Eastside Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
It can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Cartersville had no problem doing just that on Friday. They took their matchup at home with ease, bagging a 40-0 win over Centennial. Given Cartersville's advantage in MaxPreps' Georgia football rankings (they are ranked 23rd, while Centennial is ranked 243rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Cartersville found their leader in underclassman Nate Russell, who threw for 158 yards and two touchdowns, and also punched in a rushing score. Cartersville also got help from Jamauri Brice who showed off his sure hands for 81 receiving yards.
Meanwhile, Eastside's and Chapel Hill's game on Friday was close at halftime, but Eastside turned on the heat in the second half with 21 points. Everything went Eastside's way against Chapel Hill as Eastside made off with a 38-14 victory. The victory was just what Eastside needed coming off of a 35-0 defeat in their prior match.
Eastside got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Michael Kenon out in front who picked up 183 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Payton Shaw was another key contributor, throwing for 265 yards and three touchdowns on only 19 passes.
Cartersville has yet to lose a game at home this season, leaving them with a 11-0 record. As for Eastside, they are on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 8-3 record this season.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's matchup: Cartersville has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 195 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Eastside struggles in that department as they've been averaging 182.5 per game. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more football content.
