Football Preview: Wharton Wildcats vs. Tampa Bay Tech Titans
The Wharton Wildcats will challenge the Tampa Bay Tech Titans at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Tampa Bay Tech took a loss in their last game and will be looking to turn the tables on Wharton, who comes in off a win.
Wharton is headed out to face Tampa Bay Tech after opening their season at home and giving their fans just what they were looking for. Wharton claimed a resounding 38-0 victory over Freedom at home. Given the Wildcats' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida football rankings (they are ranked 99th, while the Patriots are ranked 513th), the result on Friday wasn't entirely unexpected.
Christopher (Cj) Hilton had a dynamite game for Wharton, rushing for 130 yards and three touchdowns on only 14 carries. Hilton's longest rush was for an impressive 55 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. Duke Corley also helped out as he racked up 109 rushing yards.
Meanwhile, Tampa Bay Tech had to start their season on the road on Friday, and it wasn't the start they were hoping for. They lost 63-40 to Venice. Despite 109 more yards than the Indians, the Titans couldn't convert that extra yardage to scores.
Tampa Bay Tech might have lost, but man, Darryon Jones was a machine: he threw for 221 yards and four touchdowns, and also rushed for 94 yards. Tampa Bay Tech also got a significant boost from Javari Barnett, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 101 yards.
Even though they lost, Tampa Bay Tech was moving up and down the field and finished the game with 580 total yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Venice only gained 471.
Wharton couldn't quite finish off Tampa Bay Tech in their previous matchup back in October of 2023 and fell 23-20. Can Wharton 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
