Looking ahead to this week's football games

Fayette County Tigers (0-5) @ Columbus Blue Devils (0-5)
Thursday, Kinnett Stadium, Columbus

The Tigers have not had the easiest half of a season but things lighten up a bit from here on out.

In fact, they don’t face a team with a winning record the rest of the way. Fayette County faced fourth ranked Carrollton last week and lost 44-13. Montrell Kelley had both touchdowns for the Tigers in the loss. Columbus has given up 35 points or more in all five games. They lost to LaGrange 41-7 last week and Carrollton 66-0 the week before.

Sandy Creek Patriots (5-0) vs. Shaw Raiders (2-3)

It’s homecoming for Sandy Creek this Friday and at 5:30 p.m. on game day they will cut the ribbon on the brick walk project. Prior to each football game at the Battlefield, the Sandy Creek Patriot football players will walk the brick pathway that will lead them to the field. Walking the bricks will eventually become a tradition for the Patriots as the years go by.

Sandy Creek played at Troup last week and won 48-10. Antonio Williams rushed for two touchdowns, while Eric Swinney (126 yards) and Delvin Weems each rushed for one. Kyle Wilson caught a touchdown pass and Mitchell McMillan had two field goals.
“Defensively I thought we played great,” said head coach Chip Walker. The Patriot defense allowed a mere 69 yards rushing and 66 yards passing for a total of 135 yards on the night. In addition the defense forced a fumble which senior Spencer Roberts recovered.

The Raiders have lost two games in a row, falling to LaGrange 31-14 two weeks ago and Alexander 42-12 last week.

Whitewater Wildcats (5-1) vs. McIntosh Chiefs (4-1)

Whitewater had been on a big roll and Northgate, last week’s opponent, had been struggling. The week before the Vikings were shut out by the Union Grove Wolverines. And yet, Northgate was up for their game with Whitewater and nearly left with a victory. Whitewater won 33-26. The Wildcats fell behind 9-0 early after a Viking safety and a touchdown. Whitewater then rattled off 13 straight points as Jay Ashley connected with Trevor Morgan on a 33 yard touchdown pass and Kendall Conley scored on a four yard run. Northgate got two straight touchdowns before Conley added a three yard touchdown run and Christian Wafford added a seven yard run. Northgate took a 26-25 lead late after a 35 yard field goal but Conley scored his third touchdown of the game to give Whitewater the lead with two minutes to go. The Wildcats converted a two point conversion and sealed the win.

McIntosh was off last week and coaches and players were likely in the stands of the Whitewater-Northgate game scouting both teams. If McIntosh hopes to be successful, they will need to slow down the Whitewater ground game and find a way to move the ball against a Wildcat defense that has been fairly stingy all season.

Landmark Christian War Eagles (4-2) vs. Strong Rock Christian Patriots (3-2)

The War Eagles defeated Our Lady of Mercy 30-27 on the road last Friday in overtime after a big drive in the closing minute of regulation capped off by a field goal. Jeremiah Kirkland finished the night with 248 yards on 29 carries and three touchdowns, while Stockton McGuire scored on the quarterback keeper in overtime. He also kicked the field goal to tie the game and force overtime.

Strong Rock Christian lost to Pace Academy 33-14 last week.

Our Lady of Mercy Bobcats (4-2) @ Holy Innocents Golden Bears (3-3)

How the Bobcats respond to last week’s heartbreaking loss to their longtime rivals will be very interesting. Our Lady of Mercy has proven themselves to be an up and comer. They hung with Athens Academy and almost escaped with what might have been their biggest road win in their history. Last week, they nearly knocked out Landmark in a game that wasn’t an offensive shootout but a battle between two very equal teams. Jameson Vest kicked two field goals for Mercy while Chris Hunt, Chauncey Laboo and Albert Wilson each scored touchdowns. In both losses this year, big plays against the defense were Mercy’s undoing. If they can avoid giving up the big plays this week, they’ll get that elusive road win against a good team.

Holy Innocents has defeated the Bobcats all three times they’ve played. The Golden Bears snapped a three game losing streak with a 56-13 win over Mt. Vernon Presbyterian last Saturday.

Starr’s Mill is off this week. They lost to Creekside 21-3 last week. The Panthers accumulated 83 yards of offense last week and allowed the Seminoles to rack up 394 yards, including 282 on the ground. Daniel Rorick’s 19 yard field goal accounted for all of the Starr’s Mill points. Starr’s Mill will play at McIntosh next Friday.