WEEK 10 GAFFNEY @ NORTHWESTERN PREVIEW

The Gaffney Indians got off to a sluggish start offensively last week at Lancaster, but their defense was dominant and the offense put it together in the 2nd half. The Indians were able to defeat the Lancaster Bruins 31 to 0. The Tribe now has won 6 in a row and they have a 7 and 2 record over-all, 3 and 0 in Region 3 4A. It sets up their big clash with the unbeaten Northwestern Trojans, for the Region 3 Championship Friday night, at District 3 Stadium in Rock Hill. Lets look at this big game.

Gaffney @ Northwestern

The Indians and Trojans are big rivals and they have met in a lot of big games over the years. The Trojans defeated the Indians in the State Championship Game in 1993, 2 to 0. The Indians were able to defeat the Trojans in the 1997 State Championship Game, 37 to 30. Then last season, they met at The Reservation for the Region 3 Championship, won by Northwestern 30 to 23. These games are just three of the big games they have met each other over the years. Since 1960, the Northwestern Trojans hold a 23 to 20 lead in the all-time series.

The Northwestern offense has been very good this season. They run an offense very much like Mike Leach ran at Texas Tech. The Trojans probably pass the football about 90% of the time. Their pass happy offense is led by record setting QB Justin Worley. He has completed 254 of 355 pass attempts this season for 3,139 yards and 38 TD passes with only 6 interceptions.
They have a couple of receivers with 59 catches, in Sr. Robert Joseph and Jr. B.J. Boyd. They have 13 TDs and 8 TDs as well. The Trojans don't run the football much, but when they do run it they have Soph. Lathomas Long, who leads them in rushing with 387 yards. The Trojans have scored 358 points, for an average of 39.8 per game. They are averaging 352.6 yards passing and 69.0 rushing, for an average of 421.6 yards of total offense per game.

The Northwestern defense don't get the publicity that their offense does, but they are very good as well. They are led by a couple of bookend Defensive Ends, one of which is a South Carolina commitment named Gerald Dixon. They have given up 141 points for an average of 15.7 per game. Their defense is a typical Northwestern defense, fast and physical.

The Gaffney offense has played very well during their 6 game winning streak. They have averaged 34.5 points per game. Their offense for the entire season has scored 247 points for an average of 27.4 per game. The Indians have averaged 389.2 total yards per game, 230.0 passing and 159.2 rushing. The Tribe's offense has been led all season by QB DeEdward Burris with 1,960 yards passing and 19 TD passes. Burris has also led the Tribe in rushing with 640 yards and 9 TDs. Quinshad Davis has had a great season with 60 catches and 11 TDs. Khris Brown has had a good season as well, with 36 catches and 6 TDs. The Gaffney offense has gotten more and more balanced as the season has gone along.

The Gaffney defense has played pretty well most of the season, even with a number of injured players. They seem to be getting healthy and better. They have had their two most dominant performances the last two weeks. They have given up only 3 points the last two weeks. They were able to hold Lancaster to 45 yards and 4 first downs last week. For the season, the defense has given up 136 points, for an average of 15.1 per game. They will be facing the best passing team in the state this week. BIG TEST!

Keys to the game for Northwestern..... (1) Do what they do best, establish their powerful passing game. (2) Mix in the running game to keep Gaffney off balance on defense. (3) Contain DeEdward Burris, don't let him have a monster game. (4) Win the turnover battle.

Keys to the game for Gaffney..... (1) The defense has got to tackle the Trojan's receivers when they catch the short passes. Don't let a short gain turn into a big play. (2) They must disrupt the timing of the Northwestern offense. (3) Force some turnovers. (4) Score points on offense. They will probably have to out score them in a shoot out.

Game Prediction..... This is one of the games that the Indians have had circled on the schedule. They lost this game at home to these guys last season and they will look for revenge. Playing at District 3 Stadium, over the years, has been a house of horrors for the Gaffney Indians. It is Halloween weekend. I have been going back and forth all week, with who I think will win this game. It would not surprise me to see either team win. When a game is this close I tend to take the home team. In a close one..... Northwestern 31 Gaffney 28

TRIBE FACTS..... There are only 6 teams with winning records against Gaffney since 1960. Those teams are Northwestern 23 and 20, Spartanburg 34 and 26, Walterboro 2 and 0, Spring Valley 1 and 0, Conway 1 and 0 and Berkeley 1 and 0.

You can check out the Gaffney @ Northwestern Recap on Saturday.

Until Next Time.

LETS TURN THE HOUSE OF HORRORS OF DISTRICT 3 STADIUM INTO A HOUSE OF WINS FOR THE TRIBE ON FRIDAY NIGHT!!!!!!