The Savannah Savages will welcome the Northeast Vikings at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Savannah's defense has only allowed 8.3 points per game this season, so Northeast's offense will have their work cut out for them.
On Friday, Savannah and St. Pius X were almost perfectly matched up, but Savannah suffered a 21-20 defeat. The matchup marked the Savages' lowest-scoring game so far this season.
Savannah might have lost, but man, Aiden Knechtenhofer was a machine: he rushed for 136 yards and one score, and also threw for 85 yards and one touchdown.
Even if they lost, Savannah's defense still kept up the pressure with three sacks. The team can thank three different players for their defensive prowess: Braylon Ellis, Kaiden Phillips, and Kegan Bechtold, who each picked up one sack apiece.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Northeast). They claimed a resounding 55-12 win over Harmon. The victory continues a trend for the Vikings in their matchups with the Hawks: they've now won three in a row.
Savannah better keep an eye on Jonathon Louis. He was instrumental in Northeast's win, throwing for 212 yards and three TDs on perfect 8-for-8 passing. Those three passing touchdowns gave Louis a new career-high. Northeast's leading receiver Adrian Gant was Louis' top target yet again, picking up 111 receiving yards and one touchdown.
Having lost for the first time this season, Savannah fell to 8-1. As for Northeast, their record is now 3-6.
Thursday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Savannah has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 290.4 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Northeast, though, as they've been averaging only 76 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Everything came up roses for Savannah against Northeast in their previous matchup back in November of 2019, as the team secured a 60-0 win. Do the Savages have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Vikings turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
