Football Preview: James Kenan Tigers vs. East Duplin Panthers
The James Kenan Tigers will face off against the East Duplin Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
East Duplin is hoping to do what East Bladen couldn't on Friday: put an end to James Kenan's winning streak, which now stands at four games. James Kenan put the hurt on East Bladen with a sharp 34-14 win. The game was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 20-0.
Meanwhile, East Duplin made easy work of Croatan on Friday and carried off a 40-17 victory. The score at the end of the third wound up being the final score as the Panthers just coasted through the last quarter.
East Duplin wouldn't let Croatan keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. East Duplin can thank Jacauri Hill and Calvin Harper for forcing both of them. Harper is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made five or more in the last eight games he's played dating back to last season.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, East Duplin was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 318 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 168 rushing yards in four consecutive contests.
James Kenan's win bumped their record up to 4-0. As for East Duplin, the victory also got them back to even at 2-2.
Friday's match might be decided in the trenches. James Kenan has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 213.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like East Duplin struggles in that department as they've been averaging 297.2. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
James Kenan might still be hurting after the 28-7 loss they got from East Duplin in their previous meeting back in September of 2023. Can James Kenan avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
