Cherokee and Andrews are an even 5-5 against one another since November of 2015, but not for long. The Cherokee Braves will challenge the Andrews Wildcats at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Cherokee is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 31.7 points per game this season.
Cherokee is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Robbinsville on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Cherokee was beaten by Robbinsville 46-16. The defeat continues a trend for the Braves in their matchups with the Black Knights: they've now lost five in a row.
Although Cherokee took the loss, they still got scores from Shiloh Woodson and Michel Gayosso.
Cherokee didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Gayosso and Brandon Santiago. Luke Smith was another major factor on D, picking up a sack, forcing a fumble, and making seven total tackles.
Meanwhile, Andrews hadn't done well against Swain County recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Andrews' defense stepped up to hand Swain County a 2-0 shutout. The two-point effort marked the Wildcats' lowest-scoring matchup of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Cherokee's loss dropped their record down to 3-3. As for Andrews, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 4-1.
Friday's game might be decided in the on the ground. Cherokee has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 191.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Andrews struggles in that department as they've been averaging 239.6. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Cherokee was able to grind out a solid win over Andrews in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, winning 21-14. Does Cherokee have another victory up their sleeve, or will Andrews turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
