Cooler weather now abounds in Cherokee County, but we are starting to enter the heat of the playoff race. Just like last week, five of the six county teams are in action this week and our Cherokee County Football game previews are here. The battle of Towne Lake takes place this Friday night at Etowah. The Eagles look to go 2-0 in region play and would almost guaranty a playoff spot with a victory. Can Woodstock pull the upset. Rivalry games can be quirky, you know…Meanwhile, River Ridge will host Sequoyah. The loser of this game will likely find themselves on the outside looking in for the post-season. Can River Ridge win their first game against a county opponent? Finally, Cherokee hosts Roswell. The Warriors have lost two straight games and now, the Roswell Hornets, (our pick to win the region title), comes calling. Can the young Warriors rebound this week? Please make sure to get out and support these young men on Friday night. As always, thanks for reading. Comments and discussion are always welcome!
Key:
TFR – Turd Ferguson Report
NR – Not Ranked
The Skinny
The Battle of Towne Lake is the 3rd oldest rivalry game in the county, and the Etowah Eagles hold a one-game lead in the series. Last week the Eagles got a big victory as they downed Cherokee in overtime. (It was Etowah’s second consecutive overtime game.) Quarterback Dalton Miller racked up 210 passing yards and 4-TDs against Cherokee but the Eagles were held to 87 team rushing yards. Miller has been steady for the Eagles under center this season while Jackson Manns has been his primary target. The Eagles are averaging 29 points per game while the defense is allowing 28.3points per game. I win this week would almost ensure the Eagles a spot in the post season.
The Woodstock Wolverines are coming got their first win of the season two weeks ago and had a bye last week. Walker Ormsby and Robbie Roper have both taken snaps under center this season for the Wolverines, but the offense has struggled at times averaging 15 points per game on the season. Meanwhile, the defense is allowing 22.2 points per game. We know that the Woodstock secondary can be challenging to throw on with David Daniel and Andrew Bartolero patrolling the defensive backfield. Despite some of Woodstock’s struggles offensively, we think they will top their 15-point average this week. We just don’t think they can outscore the Eagles. But rivalry games can be quirky. We like Etowah anyway by 11.
The Skinny
The Sequoyah Chiefs will make the short trip down East Cherokee drive to face county foe River Ridge. This is a must win game for both teams with regards to staying in contention for a playoff spot. In River Ridge’s 2 wins, they have outscored their opponents 83-7 and in their 4 losses, the Knight s have been outscored 158-20. River Ridge will need to get super sophomore running back Amehre Morrison cranked up against the Chiefs defense. He is a home run play waiting to happen.
The Chiefs were hurt last week against Creekview with four costly turnovers inside of the Grizzlies 35-yard line. One of those turnovers was returned for a score. The Chiefs will need to minimize those mistakes this week. Offensively, the Chiefs will attack with the Wing-T. Look for Jaden Mitchell, Aidan Moore and Sean Hayes to get the bulk of the carries for the Chiefs. On defense, Christian Kirby, Jack Blackmon, Christian Hodgins and Myles McGee will be tasked with slowing down Morrison and the Knights. Sequoyah is allowing a respectable 18 points per game, and they gave up the lion’s share of those points to Dalton. Need we remind everyone that River Ridge has never won a game against a county opponent? Is this the week? We are going to put the Chiefs on upset alert…but do expect them to pull this game out in what might be one of the closest contests in the rivalry. Chiefs by 1.
The Skinny
The Cherokee Warriors look to bounce back from last week’s overtime loss as they host the Roswell Hornets this week in another pivotal Region 4-7A battle. It was the second consecutive loss for the Warriors and this week it doesn’t get any easier. Last week A.J. Swann passed for 267 yards and 3-TDs but, the Etowah defense held the Warriors to 22 yards rushing. On the season, Swann surpassed the 1,000-yard mark, passing for 1,124 yards and 9-TDs while Keith Adams, Jr. has rushed for 510 yards and 5-TDs. Adarrius Harshaw (25 receptions, 332 yards, 3-TDs) and Landon Ergle (20 receptions, 275 yards, 3-TDs) lead the Warriors in receiving. Meanwhile, the Warriors defense has now gone two weeks without recording a turnover. Braesen Parker (73 tackles, 4 sacks) Brandon Byrd (65 tackles) and Patrick Dahlen (65 tackles, 3-INTs) lead the Warriors on defense.
This will be the first region game for the Hornets. They were off last week, after shutting out Wheeler back on September 27th. The Hornets have recorded two shutouts this season and are allowing a paltry 6.5 points per game. Offensively, the Hornets should present a balanced attack against the Warriors. Savion McCrary and Nnamdi Orjioke will lead the Hornets rushing attack while senior signal caller Ethan Roberts will look to get the ball to receivers Marquis Willis, Jacob Jarrett and tight-end John Copenhaver. While the Hornets area averaging 31 points per game on offense, we think this one might be a little lower scoring. We like Roswell on the road this week by 7.