The Armwood Hawks will head out to square off against the Wharton Wildcats at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Armwood has eight straight victories, Wharton has three straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Armwood's defense heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They blew past Steinbrenner 58-0. Considering the Hawks have won six games by more than 20 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Armwood's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Rhys Brush, who rushed for 45 yards and one score, and also threw for 90 yards and a pair of TDs on only eight passes. Another passer making a difference was Jarvis Howell II, who threw for 66 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Armwood's run defense was locked in: Steinbrenner could only muster -0.1 yards per carry. The team can thank Jeremiah Sykes for the heroic effort on defense: he. Armwood didn't have any issues in that department, having averaged 10.1.
Special teams also played a big role in the game for Armwood, adding 16 points to the final score. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Larry Warren, who ran a punt back for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Wharton was beaten by Gaither 48-7 on Friday. While losing is never fun, the Wildcats can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida football rankings (they are ranked 214th, while the Cowboys are ranked 32nd).
Despite the defeat, Wharton saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Ty Nesmith rushed for 105 yards and two TDs on only ten carries.
Wharton now has a losing record of 4-5. As for Armwood, their victory bumped their record up to 8-0.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Armwood has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 149.6 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Wharton, though, as they've been averaging only 93.7 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Everything came up roses for Armwood against Wharton in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, as the squad secured a 55-0 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Hawks since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
