J.Z. George High School will be battling for a spot in the Class 2A football playoffs Friday when they head to Marks to take on the Dragons of M.S. Palmer High School.
The Jaguars are coming off a gauntlet of a three-game stretch against Northside, Eupora and Charleston. They were outscored 124-18 by those three teams. All are ranked in the top 10 in Class 2A.
“We survived those three games and turn our attention to the last two games against Palmer and Leland,” said J.Z. George coach Dustin Alford. “We control our own destiny. Win these next two, and we go into the playoffs as the third seed. I think these guys will respond Friday night. They remain upbeat and understand what’s at stake.”
J.Z. George is 2-6 overall and 0-2 in Region 3-2A. M.S. Palmer is 0-8 and 0-2. The Dragons dropped a 30-28 decision to Bruce High School last week.
“We saw the film from that game, and they played Bruce very well in a tight game,” said Alford. “They are a lot like us. They will be moving the ball and have something go wrong. They’ve had a few issues this season with kids quitting and some other things. I’m just hoping we can go there and take care of business.
“Palmer is a very beatable team. It’s real simple for us; win and we are in. If we don’t, we have to beat Leland by 12 points. I don’t like when it gets down to that.”
The Jaguars dropped a 42-12 decision to Charleston last week in a Region 3 contest. Justin Weatherall scored both touchdowns on runs of 61 and 32 yards. As a team, J.Z. George had 140 yards rushing on 30 carries.
Tyler Duren led the defense with six solo stops and two assists.
The Jaguars welcomed back quarterback Joshua Fleming, who had suffered an injury in week 4 against Riverside. He played in the second half.
“It was basically to let him get in there and see how he felt,” said Alford. “I feel like he should be able to go this week.”
