Division play and Thursday night games dominate the lineup of local games this week.
Headlining this week’s slate of games is a matchup of 2A powers as Philadelphia travels to Lake on Thursday. Also on Thursday night, Quitman will be at Newton County, Stringer will be at Union and Newton will be at Scott Central.
Meanwhile in the private school ranks, Sylva Bay will make the short trip to Decatur to take on the Generals of NCA in one of the area’s most heated rivalries.
Here is a rundown on this week’s games:
Philadelphia at Lake
Two years ago, Lake pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the year when they went to Philadelphia and beat the Tornadoes at Harpole Stadium.
This year, the Hornets will get another shot at the Tornadoes, who many feel is the favorite to win Class 2A this season.
The Tornadoes are 6-1 on the season with their lone loss come to Center Point, Ala. (26-20) in the first game of the season. Since then, the Tornadoes have wins over West Lauderdale (29-21), Leake Central (26-7), Noxubee County (23-22), Madison-Ridgeland Academy (21-14), Kemper County (41-14) and Scott Central (24-14).
“They are very athletic and it’s another game that we have to go eat up some clock,” Lake coach Tate Hanna said. “We have to keep the ball out of their hand. They have one of the best receivers in the state and the quarterback will play Division I ball. The have four D-I players on their team. They are going to score, we just have to answer.”
Last year, Philadelphia beat Lake 35-14. Two years ago, Lake beat Philly 34-30 to hand the Tornadoes their first loss of the season.
Sylva Bay at NCA
The Generals will try to take control of district play this week when they host rival Sylva Bay on Friday night.
The Saints are 2-5 on the season but have won two out of the last three. Last week, Sylva Bay beat Centreville 28-16 and beat Benton 28-15 three weeks ago. They have losses to North Delta (42-0), Winston Academy (35-7), Tri-County (41-21), Wayne Academy (25-14) and Brookhaven (43-31).
“They changed their offense up last week and jumped out 28-0 on Centreville last week,” NCA coach Rob Roberts said. “They have a huge line and run it right at you. They are running the double wing and looked really good in its last week. It’s a big game for us. We are both 1-0 in the district. They beat Centreville last week and are in a good spot.”
Last year, Sylva Bay beat NCA twice with a 46-14 win in the regular season and a 46-19 win to open the playoffs.
Quitman at Newton County
The Cougars will also be playing on Thursday night as they host Quitman in another 5-4A contest.
The Panthers are 4-3 on the season and have won three straight games. They have wins over Heidelberg (23-6), West Lauderdale (37-19), Northeast Lauderdale (28-12) and Florence (39-7). Their losses are to Wayne County (28-14), West Jones (41-14) and Greene County (25-6).
“I think they are pretty good,” County coach Bobby Bass said. “They are still in the spread and run the inside zone and the triple option off of that. They are running it more than they are throwing it. They have athletes everywhere. We have to tackle a lot better than we did last week, that’s for sure.”
Last year, Quitman beat Newton County 47-20.
Stringer at Union
Union will play early this week as they host Stringer on Thursday night.
Stringer is 3-4 on the season with wins over Clarkdale (35-10), Salem (54-0), and Mount Olive (40-24). They have losses to Bay Springs (40-0), Enterprise (24-16), Lumberton (41-7) and Resurrection Catholic (35-20).
“They look good on film,” Breland said. “They have some big linemen and have some good-looking backs We will have to be ready to play and then get ready for the final three weeks of the regular season.”
Newton at Scott Central
The Tigers will also play early this week as the travel to the defending Class 2A state champions on Thursday night.
The Rebels are 5-2 on the season with losses to 2A contenders Taylorsville (32-12) in the season opener and then a 24-14 loss to Philadelphia last week. They have wins over Raleigh (40-12), Charleston (13-12), Florence (33-6), Pelahatchie (35-7) and Morton (49-0).
Last year, Scott Central beat Newton 40-6.
