The North Pike Jaguars (2-7, 2-3) will travel across the county Friday night to take on South Pike in the final district 7-3A contest for both teams.
South Pike (5-3, 4-1) needs the win to hold on to the No. 1 spot in the playoffs, while North Pike holds a slim opportunity to make the playoffs with a win and a Franklin County loss to Amite County.
North Pike head coach Chris Smith said the Jaguars will try some new things this week. The Jaguars have been tinkering with the veer offense.
“We will use Revis Butler a little more at quarterback, but we will also use TJ Johnson on some sets,” Smith said.
“We are happy with the way TJ has run the offense the last several weeks. Other than a few mistakes, TJ did a good job last week.”
The county rivalry combined with the hope of a playoff berth should help pump up the Jaguars.
“We are working on intensity this week, and we are telling the kids that this is our playoff game,” Smith said. “We still have a mathematical chance of making the playoffs, but we are going to try to get more of the younger kids in the game, if possible.
“Defensively, there are not going to be any major changes for us. We just hope to improve the intensity on defense.”
South Pike doesn’t plan on changes to either side of the ball, according to South Pike head coach Randall Huffman.
“We’re going to do the same things we’ve been doing for the last nine games,” Huffman said. “It’s too late for any big changes. We’ve got one kid hurt, but the other guys will step up.”
The pressure will be on the Eagles in this contest, while North Pike will have the chance to be the spoiler.
This will be the first time that the South Pike players will face their old offensive coordinator, Brinson Wall.
“Brinson may have the upper hand,” Huffman said. “He knows our kids. If anyone will have an advantage, it will be Brinson.”
Both teams are tight lipped about how they are preparing for this game.
North Pike has been experimenting on offense in their last few games, so expect to see to some new looks from the Jaguars. The Jaguars have shown the ability to move the ball against anyone, but sustaining drives has been an issue.
Also, expect some new things from South Pike. With his old offensive coordinator on the other side of the field, Huffman is sure to throw in some new wrinkles.
