The Washington Patriots and the Hampshire Trojans are set to duel on Friday.
Washington is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of West Virginia's top teams: Martinsburg, who was ranked first in their home state at the time (Washington was ranked 22nd). Washington took a blow against Martinsburg on Friday, falling 51-7. The Patriots have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Washington's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Javon Jones, who picked up 100 receiving yards and a touchdown, and Michael Thompson, who threw for 83 yards and a touchdown on only seven passes. Thompson's passing game has become a key predictor of Washington's success: the team is 3-1 when his passer rating is 100 or higher, but only 1-2 otherwise.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Hampshire). They simply couldn't be stopped on Friday as they easily beat Berkeley Springs 45-7 at home. The win was familiar territory for the Trojans who have now won three matchups in a row.
Washington's defeat dropped their record down to 4-3. As for Hampshire, their victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-3.
Everything came up roses for Washington against Hampshire when the teams last played back in October of 2023, as the squad secured a 38-0 win. Will Washington repeat their success, or does Hampshire have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
