Athens has gone a perfect 3-0 against Fort Payne recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Friday. The Golden Eagles will square off against the Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Athens sitting on three straight wins and Fort Payne on eight.
On Friday, Athens didn't have too much trouble with Russellville as they won 28-12. The Golden Eagles pushed the score to 28-6 by the end of the third, a deficit the Golden Tigers cut but never quite recovered from.
Athens got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Terron Williams out in front who rushed for 42 yards and one TD, and also picked up 41 receiving yards. Aidan Lovell was another key player, rushing for 19 yards and a pair of scores.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Athens was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 325 rushing yards. They are 4-1 when they've run for more than 200 yards.
Clarence Jones
| 10/31/25 vs Russellville | 1 |
| 09/26/25 @ Hazel Green | 1 |
| 08/22/25 vs Mae Jemison | 1 |
Athens didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Ethan Lawniczak and Clarence Jones. Jones has become a key player for Athens: the team is undefeated when he posts at least one interception, but 3-4 otherwise.
Meanwhile, it was a proper cat-fight when Fort Payne duked it out with Pelham on Thursday. The Wildcats came out on top against the Panthers by a score of 28-21.
Fort Payne's win came from a few key players Athens will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Blake Griggs, who rushed for 89 yards and one touchdown on only 11 carries, and also threw for 113 yards and one TD while completing 91.7% of his passes. Another player making a difference was Kaiden Adams, who rushed for 156 yards.
Athens' win bumped their record up to 6-4. As for Fort Payne, their victory bumped their record up to 9-1.
Friday's contest might be decided on the ground. Athens has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 254.7 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Fort Payne struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 212.3 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Athens won a matchup that couldn't have been any closer in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, slipping by Fort Payne 29-28. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Wildcats' Dax Varnadore, who threw for 262 yards and one touchdown, and also picked up 36 receiving yards. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for the Golden Eagles to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
