The Northeast Raiders will square off against the Academy for Classical Education Gryphons at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Academy for Classical Education is hoping to do what Jefferson County couldn't two weeks ago: put an end to Northeast's winning streak, which now stands at three games. Northeast blew past Jefferson County, posting a 47-0 win at home. Given the Raiders' advantage in MaxPreps' Georgia football rankings (they are ranked 152nd, while the Warriors are ranked 410th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Northeast can attribute much of their success to Nick Woodford, who rushed for 161 yards and three touchdowns on only 11 carries, and Reginald Glover, who threw for 154 yards and two touchdowns. Woodford's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his third straight game with at least 127 rushing yards dating back to last season. Keandre Jackson was Glover's top target, picking up 73 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Northeast's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. In fact, those interceptions all came courtesy of defensive juggernaut Kortnei Williams. Tailen Sampson was another major factor on D, picking up a sack and making eight total tackles (4.0 for loss).
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Northeast was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 219 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 167 rushing yards in four consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Academy for Classical Education). They claimed a resounding 51-14 victory over Wilkinson County on the road. The Gryphons pushed the score to 37-14 by the end of the third, a deficit the Warriors had little chance of recovering from.
A big part of the win came down to the chemistry between Ace Hatcher and his top target Brice Whitley. Hatcher threw for 188 yards and four touchdowns on only 17 passes while Whitley gained 154 total yards and two touchdowns. The dominant performance gave Whitley a new career-high in rushing yards. Jaylon Davis was Hatcher's top target, picking up 72 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Academy for Classical Education's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB six times. Leading the way was Waylon Allen with four sacks. He also set a new season high mark in total tackles with seven.
Northeast's victory bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Academy for Classical Education, their win bumped their record up to an identical 3-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Northeast has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 272.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Academy for Classical Education struggles in that department as they've been averaging 218.5. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything went Northeast's way against Academy for Classical Education in their previous matchup back in September of 2023 as Northeast made off with a 52-26 victory. Will Northeast repeat their success, or does Academy for Classical Education have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
