GAME OF THE WEEK: Perry and Houston County football aim to remain undefeated in week three clash

The last two years of the Perry and Houston County rivalry have been ones to remember.

In 2022 HoCo just barely won at home 57-56, and in 2023 the Bears were one of Panthers’ only two losses in a championship season 42-35.

Both teams remain undefeated at 2-0 in 2024, and they’ll look to stay that way as they meet in the Panther Pit on Friday in this week’s game of the week.

Here are three things to watch:

1. Can the Perry secondary maintain solid coverage?

Peach County had multiple 70-plus-yard pass plays on Friday resulting from busted coverages in the Panthers’ secondary. The Trojans also overthrew a couple of would-be touchdowns that could have changed the game.

Perry football coach Kevin Smith knows that those kinds of mistakes won’t fly against a lethal Bears passing attack.

“We got to get that cleaned up,” Smith said of the busted coverage. “I think the guys that we got back there are more than capable of getting the job done, it’s just a lack of experience. That’s game two for them.”

Some of Perry’s cornerbacks struggle in one-on-one coverage, and against dynamic threats like HoCo’s Isaiah Mitchell that could spell trouble down the field.

The Bears also had trouble putting their week two opponent away in Effingham County, but HoCo coach Jeremy Edwards anticipates that to be a little better when they return a couple of defensive starters who were replaced by sophomores last Friday.

2. Which running game will come out on top?

Both Perry and HoCo have had great success on the ground to start the season.

Ahmad Gordon and Decorrion Daniels each rushed for over 100 yards against Baldwin, and scored two and three touchdowns against Peach County respectively.

Gordon offers bruising power, and Daniels compliments well with speed. Those two have seen the field together at the same time, too, in a lethal wildcat formation led by Gordon.

Cullen McDaniel also provides a threat on the ground while managing the game through the air.

On the other side, Javien Durham and Austin Stinson have also been productive for the Bears this year.

Durham is a more physical back and has rushed for 120-plus yards in the last two games. Stinson offers great top speed not just as a runner, but as a passing threat out wide. He’s received touchdown passes on trick plays in each of the Bears’ first two games.

“The name of the game is you gotta create explosive plays and you gotta limit explosive plays, and obviously [Gordon and Daniels] have the ability to create explosive plays for their offense and so we’ve gotta hold them in check. Our defensive front has been strong so far this season,” Edwards said.

“We just gotta be consistent, I think we’ve been that way so far,” Smith said. “We got to stay healthy. I think that Cullen is really blossoming as our starting quarterback…The offensive line is starting to come together up front. We got Jukorin Thomas back, one of our three-year starters, it’s really helped.”

3. Throw everything out, it’s rivalry week

There will always be speculation about games and their outcomes, but when it comes to rivalry games you can throw that all out, according to Edwards.

“It’s a rival…throw out records and stats and all that stuff, it’s irrelevant. The last two years have been two really good games and we expect the same thing. We’re gonna have to play 48 minutes and we’ll get our kids ready to go,” Edwards said.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 30 in the Panther Pit.