Football Preview: Hawkinsville Red Devils vs. Wheeler County Bulldogs
The Hawkinsville Red Devils's homestand will continue as they prepare to take on the Wheeler County Bulldogs at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both are strolling into their matchups after big wins in their previous games.
Hawkinsville's defense heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed two weeks ago. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Rutland 31-0 at home. The contest marked the Red Devils' most dominant victory of the season so far.
Nieem Blair was his usual excellent self, rushing for 128 yards and two touchdowns on only seven carries. That's the most rushing yards he has posted since back in October of 2023.
Hawkinsville was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 272 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 171 rushing yards in 15 consecutive games dating back to last season.
On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Hawkinsville's defense and their five sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Johnathan Solomon and Harlem Phillips, who racked up four sacks between them.
Meanwhile, Wheeler County had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 23.7 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Friday. They blew past the Bobcats, posting a 45-16 win at home. Considering the Bulldogs have won three matchups by more than 28 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Wheeler County's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Alvin Ricks, who rushed for 195 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 9.8 yards per carry. Ricks' rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his seventh straight game with at least 100 rushing yards dating back to last season. Justin Culver was another key rusher, rushing for 201 yards and a touchdown while picking up 9.6 yards per carry.
Hawkinsville's victory bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Wheeler County, their win bumped their record up to 4-1.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Hawkinsville has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 234.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Wheeler County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 305.4. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Hawkinsville didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Wheeler County when the teams last played back in October of 2023, but they still walked away with a 33-27 victory. Will Hawkinsville repeat their success, or does Wheeler County have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
