Postseason hopes spice up rivalry between Southwest and Northeast

Regardless of what the sport is, there’s always at least something on the line any time two teams from within Bibb County line up against one another.

But something more than simply bragging rights will be at stake at 7:30 p.m. on Friday when Southwest takes on Northeast at Henderson Stadium.

Jockeying for postseason berths in GHSA Region 3-2A will be in the crosshairs for both teams.

The Patriots (2-3) are 1-0 in region play with a win against Dodge County. The Raiders meanwhile (1-5) sit at 1-1 in the region following a defeat of Bleckley County and most recently, a 41-0 loss to Dodge County. Southwest beat Dodge County 26-19 prior to last week’s open date.

“We just take it one at a time,” Southwest head coach Joseph Dupree said. “Northeast is next on the schedule. But any time you play an in-town game, it’s big. They’ll be ready to play we’ll be up ready to play.

“We have an opportunity of going 2-0 in the region, which is huge for us with our goal of winning the region. It’s a big game and we’re excited for the opportunity of it.”

With a win, the Patriots can improve their postseason hopes, making them potentially one of three region teams to be unbeaten at the end of the night, depending on what Dublin and Washington County do. The Fighting Irish and Golden Hawks are a combined 10-1 overall.

A win by Northeast, however, would pull move the Raiders half a game ahead of Southwest in the region standings.

Dublin hosts Dodge County this week and Washington County plays at home against Bleckley County with East Laurens having the week off.

“We’ve been working hard this week and hope we’ll be able to bounce back against a pretty good team,” Northeast head coach Bruce Mullen said. “We know that if we win this game, it gives us two wins (in the region) and it gives us an upper hand. If we win this game, we know we have a good chance to get in the playoffs.”

With it now being make or break time for playoff chances, the Patriots are looking to harness any type of momentum that they can.

“Just being 1-0, beating a team like Dodge, it’s a huge momentum for us,” Dupree said. “We just want to build off of that.”

That building clearly includes the offensive side of the ball for the Patriots. Other than against Class 4A opponent Spalding, Southwest has improved its offensive output with each game, setting a season high against Dodge County for points and yards gained. Quarterback Jordan Slocum ran for one score in that win and passed for two more, and Dupree is looking for more of that against the Raiders.

“I feel like as our quarterback goes, we go,” Dupree said. “If Jordan Slocum has a good game throwing it or running it, we’ll be fine. Our offensive line, if they continue to block and do those things well for our offense, I think we’ll be fine.”

But Southwest will also have to contend with Northeast’s athleticism as well.

The Raiders have utilized the ability of Vincent McCarthy and Nolan Ussery at various parts of the offense, shifting them around between the quarterback and running back positions to keep defenses off-guard. Both have accounted for all seven Northeast rushing scores this season.

Ussery has thrown for 380 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 307 yards and four touchdowns with McCarthy having 214 yards to go with his trio of touchdowns.

“They’re athletic and will be well-coached,” Dupree said. “We’ll have to play four quarters. If we don’t, it could be a long night for us.”

This story was originally published October 5, 2016 at 9:49 PM with the headline "Postseason hopes spice up rivalry between Southwest and Northeast."