The Linden Patriots will challenge the Southern Choctaw Indians at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Linden has seven straight victories, Southern Choctaw has four straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Linden's offense will try to repeat the strong performance it gave two weeks ago, when they got past University Charter's usually-dominant defense. Linden was the clear victor by a 33-8 margin over University Charter. Considering the Patriots have won seven games by more than 21 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
This one was won in the trenches and the lion's share of the credit has to go to Isaiah Brown and Tyran Richardson. Brown rushed for 90 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries while Richardson rushed for 93 yards on only 12 carries.
Linden was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 300 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 226 rushing yards in ten consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Southern Choctaw ended up a good deal behind Excel on Friday and lost 28-14. While the Indians had to settle for second, they closed the game well in the third quarter, where they outscored the Panthers 6-0.
Despite their defeat, Southern Choctaw saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Christopher Bush, who picked up 91 receiving yards and a touchdown, was perhaps the best of all. Bush really caught the secondary sleeping when he pulled down a catch that went for 80 yards. Ray Bender was another key player, throwing for 211 yards and two touchdowns on only 19 passes.
Linden pushed their record up to 8-2 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. Those victories were due in large part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 7.3 points per game. As for Southern Choctaw, their loss dropped their record down to 5-5.
Linden skirted past Southern Choctaw 16-14 in their previous matchup back in September. Does Linden have another victory up their sleeve, or will Southern Choctaw turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
