Football Game Preview: St. Stephens Indians vs. South Caldwell Spartans

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Previous 6 Games

04/01/21 - Away	13-44 L
11/01/19 - Home	29-28 W
10/26/18 - Away	28-44 L
10/27/17 - Home	56-7 W
10/21/16 - Home	13-41 L
10/23/15 - Away	25-20 W

St. Stephens and South Caldwell are an even 3-3 against one another since October of 2015, but not for long. The Indians will take on the Spartans at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. St. Stephens will be strutting in after a win while South Caldwell will be coming in after a defeat.

St. Stephens lost a heartbreaker the last time they played McDowell, but it's fair to say they got their revenge given the result of Friday's contest. The Indians put the hurt on the Titans with a sharp 41-16 victory on Friday. The game marked the Indians' most dominant win of the season.

Meanwhile, South Caldwell was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their fourth straight loss. They came up short against Freedom, falling 56-35. While losing is never fun, the Spartans can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina football rankings (they are ranked 264th, while the Patriots are ranked 67th).

St. Stephens will have to keep a close watch on Corbin McGhinnis and Masyn Clay, a pair of players who had a big impact on South Caldwell's prior game. McGhinnis threw for 247 yards and three touchdowns, while Clay picked up 94 receiving yards and a pair of scores. The bulk of those receiving yards came from one huge play: a catch that gained an incredible 79 yards.

South Caldwell's defeat dropped their record down to 2-6. As for St. Stephens, the victory got them back to even at 4-4.

Friday's matchup might be decided on the ground. St. Stephens has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 191.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like South Caldwell struggles in that department as they've been averaging 165.9 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's contest turns into a tough fight on the ground.

St. Stephens was taken down by South Caldwell 44-13 when the teams last played back in April of 2021. Thankfully for the Indians, Isaiah Kirby (who rushed for 146 yards and three TDs while picking up 7.7 yards per carry) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.