The North Mecklenburg Vikings will square off against the Independence Patriots at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. North Mecklenburg is coming into the game on a three-game losing streak.
On Friday, North Mecklenburg lost to Chambers at home by a 21-6 margin.
Meanwhile, Independence faced Mallard Creek in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. The Patriots blew past the Mavericks 35-0. That's two games straight that the Patriots have won by exactly 35 points.
Independence's win came from a few key players North Mecklenburg will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Jared Street Jr, who rushed for 138 yards and one touchdown on only 12 carries, and also threw for 127 yards and three TDs on only 11 passes. Those 138 rushing yards gave him a new career-high. Jayden Jones was another key player, rushing for 180 yards and one score while picking up 10.0 yards per carry.
Independence was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 419 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Independence pushed their record up to 6-2 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 11.8 points on average over those games. As for North Mecklenburg, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-5.
North Mecklenburg might still be hurting after the 47-26 loss they got from Independence in their previous meeting back in August of 2019. Thankfully for the Vikings, Davion Nelson (who rushed for 245 yards and a pair of TDs while picking up 12.3 yards per carry) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
