After each having a week off, the Harrison Hoyas and the Marietta Blue Devils will shake off the rust and duke it out at 7:00 p.m. on the 14th. Harrison will be strutting in after a victory while Marietta will be coming in after a loss.
Marietta will take on a team with plenty of momentum: Harrison extended their winning streak to four on Thursday. The Hoyas simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Paulding County 52-12. The final result isn't all that surprising considering the Hoyas' considerable advantage in MaxPreps' Georgia football rankings (they are ranked 22nd, while the Patriots are ranked 210th).
Harrison found their leader in sophomore Aiden Watson, who threw for 240 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 11.4 yards per attempt, and also rushed for 63 yards and one score. Another player making a difference was Dj Huggins, who picked up 101 receiving yards and one TD.
Meanwhile, Marietta unfortunately witnessed the end of their five-game winning streak on Friday. They took a 28-24 hit to the loss column at the hands of North Paulding. While the Blue Devils had to settle for second, they closed the game well in the third quarter, where they outscored the Wolfpack 14-7.
Harrison will have to keep a close watch on Jayden Whiteside and Isaac Copeland, a pair of players who had a big impact on Marietta's prior game. Whiteside threw for 263 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Copeland picked up 149 receiving yards and one score. Copeland has become a key player for Marietta: the team is 2-1 when he posts at least 80 receiving yards, but 3-4 otherwise.
Marietta's defeat was their first in the region, dropping their region record down to 5-1 and their overall record down to 5-5. As for Harrison, their record now sits at 9-1.
Harrison came up short against Marietta in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, falling 36-28. Can the Hoyas avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps