On Friday Pike Road will have to hit the road after four straight games at home. They will square off against the Stanhope Elmore Mustangs at 7:00 p.m. Pike Road is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 29.6 points per game this season.
Pike Road is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They put the hurt on Park Crossing with a sharp 54-28 victory on Friday. Given the Patriots' advantage in MaxPreps' Alabama football rankings (they are ranked 51st, while the Thunderbirds are ranked 248th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Mike Jones, who rushed for 71 yards and four touchdowns.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Pike Road was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 280 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in October of 2023.
Another reason for the win was Pike Road's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for six sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Amari Smith and Akeem Blackmon, who racked up five sacks between them.
Meanwhile, Stanhope Elmore started off well but failed to capitalize on an early lead against Russell County. They received a blow on Friday as they fell 42-28 to the Warriors. Despite 68 more yards than the Warriors, the Mustangs couldn't convert that extra yardage to scores.
The match pitted two dominant backs against one another in Arthur Mcqueen and Devin Brown. Brown had a great game and rushed for 201 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 10.1 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Mcqueen was balling out in the loss, rushing for 203 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 7.5 yards per carry.
Pike Road now has a winning record of 4-3. As for Stanhope Elmore, their loss dropped their record down to 3-3.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Pike Road has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 167.1 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Stanhope Elmore struggles in that department as they've been averaging 344. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Pike Road against Stanhope Elmore when the teams last played back in October of 2023, as the team secured a 52-14 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Pike Road since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
