Escambia County has enjoyed a three-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will square off against the St. Michael Catholic Cardinals at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Last Friday, Escambia County came up short against Mobile Christian and fell 13-6. The Blue Devils haven't had much luck with the Leopards recently, as the team's come up short the last two times they've met.
Jovaughntai Henderson put forth a good effort for the losing side as he rushed for 102 yards, and also picked up 33 receiving yards. Escambia County also got help from She'Marrion Matthews, who showed off his sure hands for 84 receiving yards.
Meanwhile, St. Michael Catholic put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They breezed by Satsuma on the road to the tune of 45-7. Given the Cardinals 's advantage in MaxPreps' Alabama football rankings (they are ranked 67th, while the Gators are ranked 226th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
St. Michael Catholic's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Gunner Rivers led the charge by throwing for 385 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 14.3 yards per attempt. Another player making a difference was Tucker Tomlinson, who picked up 182 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Escambia County's defeat dropped their record down to 1-3. As for St. Michael Catholic, they pushed their record up to 4-0 with that win, which was their third straight on the road.
The upcoming matchup will be a clash of competing strengths. Escambia County has deployed a run-first offense that has averaged 171 rushing yards a game. Meanwhile, St. Michael Catholic has preferred to attack from the air: they average 285.5 passing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Friday? There's only one way to find out.
Escambia County ended up a good deal behind St. Michael Catholic when the teams last played back in September of 2023, losing 41-26. Can Escambia County 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
