The Huntington Raiders will challenge the Evangel Christian Academy Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Huntington is returning home triumphant after the team finally put their road woes behind them against Haughton on Friday. The Raiders took down the Buccaneers 42-28.
Huntington's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Justin Whitaker, who threw for 303 yards and five TDs, and also rushed for 65 yards on only six carries. Caiden Starks was Whitaker's top target, picking up 127 receiving yards and four scores.
Another reason for the win was Huntington's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for three sacks. In that department, Jaylin Morgan was the leader with two.
Meanwhile, Evangel Christian Academy faced Airline in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. The Eagles came out on top in a nail-biter against the Vikings, sneaking past 51-49. The win almost wasn't to be: the Eagles were down 28-14 in the second quarter.
Huntington better keep an eye on Peyton Houston. He was instrumental in Evangel Christian Academy's win, throwing for 454 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 16.8 yards per attempt, and also rushing for 39 yards. That's the most passing yards Houston has posted since back in October of 2024. Demarkus Evans was Houston's top target, picking up 128 receiving yards and a pair of TDs.
Evangel Christian Academy pushed their record up to 3-1 with the victory, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. Those home wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 51.8 points over those games. As for Huntington, the victory got them back to even at 2-2.
The upcoming contest will be a clash of competing strengths. Huntington has relied on air attacks this season and has averaged 282 passing yards per game. Evangel Christian Academy, on the other hand, has relied on a stout run game: they average 257.5 rushing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Thursday? There's only one way to find out.
Huntington won a matchup that couldn't have been any closer in their previous matchup back in October of 2024, slipping by Evangel Christian Academy 28-27. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Houston, who threw for 372 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 10.9 yards per attempt, and also rushed for 55 yards on only seven carries. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will the Raiders still be able to contain Houston? There's only one way to find out.
