Northside football hosts Coffee in first region contest under Daniel Williams

Northside is still looking for their first win of the season, and their first region win since 2023, as they host Coffee this week in Daniel Williams’ first region game at the MAC.

Here are a few things to note:

Stout defense meets one-dimensional offense

It’s no secret that Coffee likes to run the ball, but this year the offense just hasn’t been able to produce like it used to.

Their season high was 28 against a Bainbridge program that’s been in free fall the last couple of years. Against Ware County, Columbia (FL) and Mainland (FL) they’ve been held to 14 points or less.

Through five games the Trojans have run the ball more than three times as many times as they’ve thrown it.

Leading the charge is familiar name Kentavius Debruce, who has 116 carries for 539 yards and eight touchdowns. He’s rushed for over 100 yards in a game three times, but he only averages 4.6 yards per carry.

Northside’s physical front is more than capable of stopping the run, especially when an offense like Coffee’s should allow them to pin their ears back and get downhill.

It’s not that easy, though…

While the Eagles’ defense is set up to have a good day against Coffee, the Trojans’ defense is still something serious.

They get after the quarterback, they catch runners behind the sticks, they deflect passes through the air. That spells trouble for a Northside offense that has not been able to find any kind of footing halfway through the season.

The offense gave the ball to Burke County twice in the end zone, which dooms the defense before it even hits the field.

Safety Kadrien Wooten, Coffee’s leading tackler, has 40 tackles (23 solo), four tackles for a loss, and an interception to his name. Should a play get to the second level he’s all over it.

That’s assuming it gets past nose guard Kawaski Brand or defensive end Josiah Mcrae, who lead the team with TFLs and quarterback pressures.

Mcrae and Brand are tied for the lead with nine TFLs, while they also have 39 tackles (24 solo) and 22 tackles (14 solo) respectively. Mcrae also leads the team with three sacks to go with six quarterback hurries, while Brand has one sack and 10 QB hurries.

The Eagles’ offense has struggled mightily against defenses that get after the quarterback, and with good safety play behind the front seven JD Garman’s legs might be neutralized.

It’ll be a tough game for both sides of the ball, but the offense will need to take some big strides for the Eagles to have a chance at winning.

Series history

These two teams haven’t played very much historically. Much of their matchups come in recent years, the first being in 2001.

That year Conrad Nix and the Eagles knocked Coffee out of the playoffs 52-14 before losing to Parkview 12-7 in the state championship game.

The teams didn’t play again until 2008 when they became part of the same region. Since then they haven’t played a game as non-region opponents, though the series did stop after 2009 and picked back up in 2016, before being dropped again after 2019 and returning in 2024.

Right now Northside is on a two-game losing streak, and they haven’t scored a touchdown against Coffee since 2018, a 30-20 win under Kevin Kinsler.

All-time the Eagles lead 5-3, but the Trojans have been closing in since their first win in the series in 2017. Since then they’ve won three of four contests, and will look to make it three straight and four out of five on Friday.