The Volunteer Falcons will venture away from home to challenge the Northview Academy Cougars at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Volunteer will be strutting in after a win while Northview Academy will be coming in after a loss.
It was a Battle of the Birds when Volunteer faced off against Seymour last Friday. The Falcons came out on top against the Eagles by a score of 41-31.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Volunteer to victory, but perhaps none more so than Lincoln Wilson, who threw for 313 yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for 38 yards. Amarion Graves was Wilson's top target, picking up 128 receiving yards and a pair of scores.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Volunteer was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 214 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 193 rushing yards in three consecutive matchups.
Another reason for the win was Volunteer's imposing defensive line, which managed to get into the backfield for four sacks. In that department, Owen Fleenor was the leader with two.
Meanwhile, Northview Academy played a tough contest on Friday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were beaten by Elizabethton 34-7. While losing is never fun, the Cougars can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Tennessee football rankings (they are ranked 207th, while the Fighting Cyclones are ranked 60th).
Despite the defeat, Northview Academy saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Keaton Phipps rushed for 114 yards and one TD.
Volunteer's record now sits at 4-1. As for Northview Academy, their loss dropped their record down to 2-4.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's game: Volunteer has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 382.4 total yards per game. It's a different story for Northview Academy, though, as they've been averaging only 194.8 total yards. Will Volunteer be able to march up the field at their leisure again, or will the Cougars flip the script?
Volunteer couldn't quite get it done against Northview Academy in their previous matchup back in September of 2024 as they fell 46-38. Can the Falcons avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
