Greetings from Powhatan Field in Norfolk. It's Lake Taylor (3-0) at Maury (1-1) in an Eastern District showdown on this comfortable 65-degree night.
We'll have updates here and via Twitter on @hatfieldsports.
In the meantime, check out our Preview below...
GAME OF THE WEEK in NORFOLK:
Lake Taylor (3-0) at Maury (1-1) . . . After dropping ten straight in the series, Maury has won two of the past three meetings with Lake Taylor, prevailing by a count of 49-7 in 2019 and 48-12 last year with a 27-14 loss to the Titans sandwiched in between. Lake Taylor breezed through its first three foes of Norcom, Currituck (NC) and Norview by a combined count of 144-28, pitching a pair of shutouts. The likes of Tarreon Washington-Jacobs (527 yards, 6 TD’s rushing), WR Elijah Washington (16Rec. 302Yds. 5 TD’s) and TE Justin Edwards each found the end zone twice in the 41-0 shutout of Norview.
Can Maury handle the running game of Lake Taylor? New Bern (NC) ran the ball 57 times for 324 yards and three touchdowns in a 21-14 win over the Commodores two Fridays ago. The Commodores saw their stud linebacker, Nathaniel ‘Booga’ Knox suffer a preseason injury in their scrimmage against King’s Fork. If the First Team All-State performer is unable to go, then it’ll be up to sophomore Dylan Goad and freshman Ike Simmons, who already holds a Virginia Tech offer, to step up in his place. There are also two former Titans on the Maury defense in senior DB Syncere Hawkins and edge rusher Aaron McDaniel that will play pivotal roles.
Even with one of the best running backs around in Duke commit Peyton Jones, it’s clear that the Commodores want to test the Lake Taylor secondary by throwing the ball. Their passing game, headed up by senior Mario Miller, completed 11 of 15 passes for 243 yards and 5 TD’s in a 66-0 shellacking of Granby. The Commodores had 52 points before half-time in that contest, including scores on defense and special teams.
Lake Taylor will have many of their key players go both ways, and from a defensive standpoint, getting solid play from those outside of their mainstays in Washington-Jacobs, Washington and UVA commit Anthony Britton is going to be important. Maury doesn’t depend on just one player in the passing game, so look for Dyrri McCain’s bunch to spread the ball around to Delaware commit Kelvin ‘K.T; Seay, juniors Da’Vontae Floyd, Fred Johnson and Josh Powell, plus sophomore LeBron Bond. How well the Lake Taylor secondary, headed up by Aquan Ballard, Titus Holte and Khamarie Trueblood, holds up is going to tell a lot.
This has the makings to be a high-scoring battle. For Maury to get an outcome similar to last year, they will need their defensive front to break down the Lake Taylor o-line and harass new Titans QB Jamir ‘Sporty’ Freeman (33 of 50 for 563 yards, 10 TD’s), who has been effective both with his legs and arm to this point.
Matt Hatfield Says – Maury 35-27
Coach Ed Young Says – Maury 30-14
We'll have updates here and via Twitter on @hatfieldsports.
In the meantime, check out our Preview below...
GAME OF THE WEEK in NORFOLK:
Lake Taylor (3-0) at Maury (1-1) . . . After dropping ten straight in the series, Maury has won two of the past three meetings with Lake Taylor, prevailing by a count of 49-7 in 2019 and 48-12 last year with a 27-14 loss to the Titans sandwiched in between. Lake Taylor breezed through its first three foes of Norcom, Currituck (NC) and Norview by a combined count of 144-28, pitching a pair of shutouts. The likes of Tarreon Washington-Jacobs (527 yards, 6 TD’s rushing), WR Elijah Washington (16Rec. 302Yds. 5 TD’s) and TE Justin Edwards each found the end zone twice in the 41-0 shutout of Norview.
Can Maury handle the running game of Lake Taylor? New Bern (NC) ran the ball 57 times for 324 yards and three touchdowns in a 21-14 win over the Commodores two Fridays ago. The Commodores saw their stud linebacker, Nathaniel ‘Booga’ Knox suffer a preseason injury in their scrimmage against King’s Fork. If the First Team All-State performer is unable to go, then it’ll be up to sophomore Dylan Goad and freshman Ike Simmons, who already holds a Virginia Tech offer, to step up in his place. There are also two former Titans on the Maury defense in senior DB Syncere Hawkins and edge rusher Aaron McDaniel that will play pivotal roles.
Even with one of the best running backs around in Duke commit Peyton Jones, it’s clear that the Commodores want to test the Lake Taylor secondary by throwing the ball. Their passing game, headed up by senior Mario Miller, completed 11 of 15 passes for 243 yards and 5 TD’s in a 66-0 shellacking of Granby. The Commodores had 52 points before half-time in that contest, including scores on defense and special teams.
Lake Taylor will have many of their key players go both ways, and from a defensive standpoint, getting solid play from those outside of their mainstays in Washington-Jacobs, Washington and UVA commit Anthony Britton is going to be important. Maury doesn’t depend on just one player in the passing game, so look for Dyrri McCain’s bunch to spread the ball around to Delaware commit Kelvin ‘K.T; Seay, juniors Da’Vontae Floyd, Fred Johnson and Josh Powell, plus sophomore LeBron Bond. How well the Lake Taylor secondary, headed up by Aquan Ballard, Titus Holte and Khamarie Trueblood, holds up is going to tell a lot.
This has the makings to be a high-scoring battle. For Maury to get an outcome similar to last year, they will need their defensive front to break down the Lake Taylor o-line and harass new Titans QB Jamir ‘Sporty’ Freeman (33 of 50 for 563 yards, 10 TD’s), who has been effective both with his legs and arm to this point.
Matt Hatfield Says – Maury 35-27
Coach Ed Young Says – Maury 30-14