Stratford, Tattnall Square set for sub-region showdown
The Stratford Eagles and Tattnall Square Trojans are two teams that are trending in different directions at this point in the season.
While Stratford has reeled off two straight wins, Tattnall Square has dropped its past two, leaving the rivals with much to play for when the Trojans travel to Stratford on Friday.
“This is always a big game, no matter what anybody’s record is,” Stratford head coach Mark Farriba said. “(Tattnall) is a scary team because they have playmakers on both sides of the ball. The coaching staff does a great job there and again, it is a big game because of the history between the schools and we’re going to have to be ready to play.”
Stratford sits at No. 14 in the latest GHSA Class A private school power ratings, while Tattnall Square sits at No. 20
The Eagles have cruised to wins over GMC and FPD the past two weeks by a combined score of 109-27. In the win over FPD, the Eagles rushed for 429 yards, with Kasey Sanders (144 rushing yards) and O’Showen Williams (167 rushing yards) each scoring two touchdowns.
“We have really focused our efforts on putting our players in the best position possible to succeed,” Farriba said. “We’ve been evaluating our personnel and figuring out if what we are doing is the best thing for our personnel. The biggest thing in getting a win is you control things. You don’t want to have to rely on other teams to help you out by losing and really we just want to stay out in front of it all and help ourselves.”
Tattnall, meanwhile, is trying to figure out a way to get its triple-option attack running a bit more efficient.
After reeling off three straight victories to start the season, the Trojans have dropped their past two games, giving up 42 points against Hancock Central and being shut out by Wilkinson County.
“It is going to be a very tough game because Stratford is just a very, very good team,” Tattnall head coach Clint Morgan said. “It will kind of work both ways for us in that the key is going to be to get Stratford off the field, and we need to sustain some drives so time of possession works in our favor to control the clock.”
As for any changes being made in order to get back to their winning ways, Morgan stressed the coaching staff simply has geared its focus toward improving its own team before focus can shift elsewhere.
“We are still a very young team, and we have just focused on us,” Morgan said. “We have to be a better football team. We are working on Tattnall getting better. We’re not necessarily focusing on Stratford or FPD or other opponents because we have to get our own team better.”
This story was originally published October 8, 2015 at 4:54 PM with the headline "Stratford, Tattnall Square set for sub-region showdown ."