The Russell County Warriors will head out on the road to face off against the Park Crossing Thunderbirds at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Russell County is still on the hunt for that elusive first 'W'.
Last Thursday, Russell County took a serious blow against Pike Road, falling 63-27. While losing is never fun, Russell County can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Alabama football rankings (they are ranked 164th, while Pike Road is ranked 29th).
Despite the loss, Russell County saw an underclassman step up: Kelston Tarver rushed for 137 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.6 yards per carry. Tarver was no stranger to the big play, turning on the jets for a run that went for 64 yards. Denver Harper was another key contributor, picking up 115 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Park Crossing came up short against Davidson on Friday and fell 21-12. Park Crossing has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
The losing side was boosted by Solomon Beebe, who rushed for 164 yards and a touchdown.
Russell County's loss was their fifth straight at home (dating back to last season), which dropped their overall record down to 0-7. Admittedly, the team was facing some tough opposition over that stretch, including 6-2 Carver Montgomery and 9-3 Central of Clay County (their opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 64.3% over those games). Park Crossing has been struggling recently, as they've lost five of their last six games, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-5 record this season.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Thursday' contest: Russell County has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 361.1 total yards per game. It's a different story for Park Crossing, though, as they've been averaging only 151.1 per game. Will Russell County be able to march up the field at their leisure again, or will Park Crossing flip the ?
Everything went Russell County's way against Park Crossing in their previous matchup back in October of 2022 as Russell County made off with a 48-22 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Russell County since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
