Football Preview: Andrews Wildcats vs. Cherokee Braves
Andrews and Cherokee are an even 5-5 against one another since November of 2015, but not for long. The Andrews Wildcats will head out to face off against the Cherokee Braves at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Andrews' defense has only allowed 10.2 points per game this season, so Cherokee's offense will have their work cut out for them.
Andrews will head into Friday's match hoping to keep the good times rolling: they proved they can win big back in September (they won by 49) but on Friday they proved they can win the close ones too. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 2-0 win over Swain County. The two-point effort marked the Wildcats' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Meanwhile, a victory for Cherokee just wasn't in the cards on Friday as the squad wasn't able to take the lead at any point. They were outmatched by Robbinsville on the road and fell 46-16. The Braves were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 33-8.
Although Cherokee took the loss, they still got scores from Shiloh Woodson and Michel Gayosso.
Cherokee didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Gayosso and Brandon Santiago. Another thorn in Robbinsville's side was Luke Smith, who picked up a sack, forced a fumble, and made seven total tackles.
Andrews' win bumped their record up to 4-1. As for Cherokee, they dropped their record down to 3-3 with the loss, which was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season.
Friday's matchup will pit two of the most dominant backs against one another: Eli Aguilar and Santiago. Aguilar has put up some stellar numbers this year, and currently owns excellent season averages 92.8 rushing yards per game this season. For his part, Santiago has averaged of 75 rushing yards per game this season.
Andrews came up short against Cherokee in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, falling 21-14. Thankfully for Andrews, Michael Driver (who rushed for ten yards and two touchdowns, and also threw for 190 yards and a touchdown) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
