Apalachee hasn't had much luck against Habersham Central recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Apalachee Wildcats will square off against the Habersham Central Raiders at 7:30 p.m.
Apalachee is headed into Friday's contest looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their 16th straight game dating back to last season on Friday. They took a 21-10 hit to the loss column at the hands of Alcovy. The matchup was a 7-7 toss-up at halftime, but the Wildcats couldn't quite close it out.
Apalachee might have lost, but man, Favian Williford was a machine: he rushed for 219 yards and a touchdown while picking up 7.8 yards per carry. Those 219 rushing yards gave Williford a new career-high.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Apalachee was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 221 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Habersham Central blew past Alcovy, posting a 52-17 win on the road.
Habersham Central found their leader in underclassman Paris Wilbanks, who threw for 158 yards and four touchdowns while completing 88.9% of his passes, and also rushed for 44 yards. Wilbanks has been hot recently, having posted three or more passing touchdowns the last four times he's played. Another player making a difference was Zeke Whittington, who picked up 72 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Habersham Central didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Braydon Strickland and Landyn Savage.
Apalachee's loss dropped their record down to 0-6. As for Habersham Central, their victory bumped their record up to 3-5.
Friday's game might be decided in the on the ground. Apalachee has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 153.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Habersham Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging 177.5. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Apalachee was taken down by Habersham Central 42-15 when the teams last played back in October of 2023. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Whittington, who picked up 158 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Now that Apalachee knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
