Football Preview: Douglas Byrd Eagles vs. Purnell Swett Rams
The Douglas Byrd Eagles will venture away from home to challenge the Purnell Swett Rams at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Douglas Byrd will be strutting in after a win while Purnell Swett will be coming in after a defeat.
Having struggled with six losses in a row, Douglas Byrd finally turned things around against Lumberton on Friday. They snuck past the Pirates with a 20-14 victory.
Justin Richardson continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 120 yards and two touchdowns. He is becoming a predictor of Douglas Byrd's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is 2-1 (and 0-5 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Isaiah Pope, who threw for 102 yards and a touchdown.
Douglas Byrd was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 233 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in August.
Douglas Byrd's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB eight times. The heavy lifting was done by Anthony Cook and Kymani Atiles, who racked up four sacks between them. Atiles is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made ten or more in the last seven games he's played.
Meanwhile, Purnell Swett was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their fifth straight defeat. They had to suffer through a 56-6 loss at the hands of Seventy-First. While losing is never fun, the Rams can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina football rankings (they are ranked 293rd, while the Falcons are ranked ninth).
Douglas Byrd's win ended a nine-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 2-6. As for Purnell Swett, their loss dropped their record down to an identical 2-6.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Douglas Byrd has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 156.2 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Purnell Swett, though, as they've been averaging only 39.4. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Douglas Byrd couldn't quite finish off Purnell Swett when the teams last played back in October of 2023 and fell 14-12. Can Douglas Byrd 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
