GAME OF THE WEEK: Northside and new head coach Daniel Williams hope to avoid ninth straight loss to Warner Robins in Crosstown Showdown

The Crosstown Showdown was a one-sided rivalry in Warner Robins’ favor up until the 1990s when Conrad Nix came back for his second run with Northside.

From 1994 to 2016 the Eagles took control of the series for the first time in history with a 16-7 record over the period, but after that the pendulum swung back to the Demons and they’re now on a series-high eight-game winning streak going back to 2017.

Last year’s game broke the previous record of seven straight losses (twice from 1968-1974 and 1989-1995) and new head coach Daniel Williams will look for Northside to avoid a ninth in 2025.

Here’s a few things to watch in this year’s Crosstown Showdown:

Pressuring the quarterback

Warner Robins quarterback Chandler Dyson threw five touchdown passes last week against Fayette County. Several of those throws were beautiful deep shots down the field that hit the receiver right in stride.

A big reason he was able to make those plays was because he had a lot of time to throw against a weak Tigers pass rush. He was able to scan the field, make his reads and deliver a perfect strike. He only had a couple of passes that weren’t right on the money, and that was when he faced some pressure.

Considering Friday will be just his third varsity game of his career, the Eagles’ front seven has an opportunity to help the secondary by pressuring Dyson and Ellison Dantes (who has gotten drives in the first two games, too).

The defensive line has done a good job so far pressuring quarterbacks with Elijah Patmon and Kel Harris manning the line. Through one game of stats listed Harris leads the team with two sacks and three tackles for a loss — both team highs.

Elijah Patmon draws double teams with his big frame and has recorded a team-high three quarterback hurries.

Not to mention defensive end Shemar Scott, who has four tackles (3 solo) and a TFL and linebacker Markel Johnson who leads with 12 tackles (6 solo) and a TFL.

They also have to worry about Dantes’ legs, though they should be aggressive trying to strip the ball because he’s fumbled the last two games.

Health and hands

Starting quarterback Wyatt Henson was injured and unavailable in Week 2’s game against Baldwin, pushing freshman JD Garman into the spotlight in his second varsity game.

Garman made some great catches in their Week 1 loss to Eagle’s Landing, meaning if he has to start again that’s one less productive receiver out there for Northside.

They did find some success getting the ball downfield in their opener against the Golden Eagles, though that was with Henson under center. Some of the balls were underthrown and broken up by defensive backs, but the Eagles did manage to pull down some long shots.

Can Garman get comfortable in the long game if it comes to that, and can the offensive line protect him enough against the best defensive line they’ll have faced this far?

The receivers on the field will have to help Garman, too, by not allowing passes to get tipped up in the air and give opposing defensive backs the opportunity to make a play on that.

In the second half of their 18-13 loss to Baldwin Garman tried to get a pass downfield but it was tipped off of a receivers hands and intercepted — plays like that have prevented the offense from coming back in the first two weeks.

That, along with procedural penalties on big downs, have derailed the Eagles’ attempts to get in the win column early.

Demons D-line

The Demons’ defensive line has had some great moments in the first two weeks of the season; The first half against Lee County and most of their time on the field against Fayette County they’ve been tough and physical.

They gave the Tigers’ quarterback maybe half a second to throw if he dropped back and swallowed up inside runners with ease. Against the Trojans they pressured Marcus Snipes Jr and stopped multiple runs before they started.

They key is whether or not they can do that for four quarters. Considering it’s a rivalry game you can throw pretty much all preconceptions out the window. Players have a different kind of energy in these kind of matchups.

Warner Robins has an advantage against the inexperienced Northside offensive line, too, so that’s another thing to keep in mind. They’ve had trouble opening up lanes for running back Travis English Jr in the first couple of weeks.

Kickoff is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 29 at 7:30 p.m. at the MAC. Warner Robins will be the home team.