Jefferson County is 2-8 against Natchez since August of 2014 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Jefferson County Tigers will head out to square off against the Natchez Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. Given that both suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.
Jefferson County will head out to face Natchez after giving up their first home loss of the season on Friday. Jefferson County took a 55-48 hit to the loss column at the hands of Murrah. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game two weeks ago (42), the Tigers still had to take the loss.
Jefferson County might have lost, but man, Royale Shelvy was a machine: he rushed for 181 yards and two touchdowns on only 15 carries, and also threw for 300 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 15.0 yards per attempt. Shelvy's longest rush was for an impressive 50 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. Jaylin Brown was in the mix too, providing Jefferson County with two touchdowns.
Even though they lost, Jefferson County was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 291 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 241 rushing yards in four consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Natchez's undefeated season came to an end after three games on Friday. They were outmatched by Ocean Springs at home and fell 49-16. The Bulldogs were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 28-0.
Natchez wouldn't let Ocean Springs keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Natchez can thank Kentrell Washington and Micah Moore for forcing both of them. Moore also set a new season high mark in total tackles with 15. Another thorn in Ocean Springs' side was Jeremiah Tillery, who picked up a sack and made 13 total tackles (5.0 for loss).
Jefferson County's defeat ended a four-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 2-2. As for Natchez, their loss was their first of the season and makes their record 3-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Jefferson County has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 319.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Natchez struggles in that department as they've been averaging 165. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Jefferson County came up short against Natchez in their previous meeting back in September of 2023, falling 26-20. Can Jefferson County avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
