Football Preview: Veterans Warhawks vs. Perry Panthers
After starting their season with three straight games on the road, Veterans is finally coming home. After each having a week off, they and the Perry Panthers will shake off the cobwebs and challenge one another at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both have been evenly matched recently as the teams are 4-4 against one another since September of 2016.
Last Friday, Veterans came up short against Starr's Mill and fell 35-27. While losing is never fun, the Warhawks can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Georgia football rankings (they are ranked 240th, while the Panthers are ranked 65th).
Despite the defeat, Veterans got top-tier performance from Aaron Evans, who picked up 78 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The dominant performance gave him a new career- in total yards.
Veterans wouldn't let Starr's Mill keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force four fumbles. Kane Byrd led the group effort, picking up two of those forced fumbles all by himself. Byrd is also crushing it when it comes to total tackles: he's made at least five every time he's taken the field this season.
Meanwhile, after a string of eight wins dating back to last season, Perry's good fortune finally ran out last Friday. The contest between them and Houston County wasn't particularly close, with Perry falling 31-17. The loss was the Panthers' first of the season.
Despite the loss, Perry got top-tier performance from Kiel Sparks, who picked up 194 receiving yards and a touchdown. With that strong performance, Sparks is now averaging an impressive 104.3 receiving yards per game. Cullen Mcdaniel was another key player, having thrown for 313 yards and onetouchdown.
Veterans' defeat was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 0-3. As for Perry, their loss was their first of the season and makes their record 2-1.
Friday's game might be decided in the trenches. Veterans has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 147.7 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Perry struggles in that department as they've been averaging 177.7. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Veterans came up short against Perry in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, falling 49-41. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Perry's Ahmad Gordon, who rushed for 169 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 8.9 yards per carry. Now that Veterans knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
