The Wheeler County Bulldogs will take on the Hawkinsville Red Devils at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Wheeler County will bounce into Friday's contest after beating Dooly County, who they hadn't topped in four consecutive meetings. Wheeler County took their game at home on Friday with ease, bagging a 45-16 win over Dooly County. Winning may never get old, but the Bulldogs sure are getting used to it with their fourth in a row.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Wheeler County to victory, but perhaps none more so than Alvin Ricks, who rushed for 195 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 9.8 yards per carry. That's the most rushing yards Ricks has posted since back in October of 2023. The team also got some help courtesy of Justin Culver, who rushed for 201 yards and a touchdown while picking up 9.6 yards per carry.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Wheeler County was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 495 rushing yards. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved they're rushing yard total in three consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Hawkinsville got themselves on the board against Rutland last Friday, but Rutland never followed suit. They blew past the Hurricanes 31-0 at home. The score at the end of the third wound up being the final score as the Red Devils just coasted through the last quarter.
Nieem Blair was his usual excellent self, rushing for 128 yards and two touchdowns on only seven carries. His longest rush was for an impressive 59 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total.
Hawkinsville's defense stepped up as well, laying out Tyson White. five times. The heavy lifting was done by Johnathan Solomon and Harlem Phillips, who racked up four sacks between them.
Wheeler County's record now sits at 4-1. As for Hawkinsville, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 3-1.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Wheeler County has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 305.4 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Hawkinsville struggles in that department as they've been averaging 234.2. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Wheeler County came up short against Hawkinsville when the teams last played back in October of 2023, falling 33-27. Can Wheeler County avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
