Preview: North Rowan Cavaliers vs. Robbinsville Black Knights
North Rowan has enjoyed the comforts of home their last three games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will square off against the Robbinsville Black Knights at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. North Rowan knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with flashy point totals in its past three matches -- so hopefully Robbinsville likes a good challenge.
North Rowan had already proven themselves in the regular season, and didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. They walked away with a 48-39 victory over Mountain Heritage on Friday. This was one game where the offenses had no trouble playing at a high level.
Jeremiah Alford and Jaemias Morrow were among the main playmakers for North Rowan as the former rushed for 95 yards and three touchdowns on only 13 carries and the latter rushed for 220 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 10.5 yards per carry. Morrow was no stranger to the big play, turning on the jets for a run that went for 64 yards.
Meanwhile, Robbinsville had already won seven in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 22.1 points), and they went ahead and made it eight on Friday. They snuck past Swain County with a 30-24 win.
Robbinsville had a senior duo take command as Cuttler Adams rushed for 147 yards and two touchdowns and Chase Calhoun rushed for 33 yards and two touchdowns. Adams is on a roll when it comes to rushing yards, as he's now rushed for 100 or more in the last eight games he's played.
North Rowan has yet to lose a game at home this season, leaving them with a 11-2 record. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 41.0 points per game. As for Robbinsville, their win bumped their record up to 12-1.
Friday's match might be decided on the ground as these two are both standouts in the run game. North Rowan has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 216.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Robbinsville struggles in that department as they've been even better at 254.4 per game. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
North Rowan couldn't quite finish off Robbinsville when the teams last played back in November of 2021 and fell 50-47. Can North Rowan avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
