For Loveland’s Homecoming game, the Tigers have the pleasure of hosting the winless Walnut Hills Eagles at home. On Friday the Tigers managed to pull out a 37-31 win on Lebanon’s home field. The game was a thriller, not being decided until overtime. For the Eagles, things went a little differently, as the Eagles were walloped in a 51-0 loss on Anderson’s field.
The Eagles look to pick up the broken pieces in the second of a three game road-stretch. On the road this season, the Eagles have been outscored a rough 135-12. Not much has gone right for Walnut Hills all year as they don’t have any player who has managed to stand out on the field or on the stat sheet. What the Eagles need to right the ship is their running back, Zion James, to make more of an impact to pick up for the Eagles passing game. Zion has put up 3.9 yards per carry and if that number continues the Eagles are facing a complete blowout. For the Eagles to have a real chance, James needs to keep the Tigers defense honest, allowing the passing game to make explosive plays down the field. James should look to average at least 5 yards a carry to help the Eagles offense efficiency on Friday Night.
Speaking of the Eagle passing game, it’s been rough at best. Senior quarterback Kellyn Brogdon’s 47.6 passing yards a game which is the lowest per game total the Tigers will face all year. Brogdon has only surpassed 100 passing yards once on the season and luckily for the Eagles, that was their last game. Brogdon has only completed 41.9 percent of his throws on the season, with his best game being once again last week against Anderson at 55.6 percent. The Eagles are hoping Brogdon continues to trend up and if they want to win this football game, they’re going to need Brogdon to overcome his turnover struggles and push the offense down the field. The Eagles need the Tigers to feel the pressure to score rather than allowing them to get comfortable controlling the pace and marching down the field.
The Tigers game plan is simple, let Colton Endicott (12) control the pace. If the Tigers can continue to give Endicott the ball and reap the benefits, this game will not be close for very long. The Tigers should continue to feed the beast that is Colton Endicott, as he has been on a terror in the last three games, averaging a ridiculous line of 27.3 touches, 175.6 yards and 2.3 touchdowns. If it isn’t Endicott that’s stuffing the stat sheet, I expect Tyler Roberts (11) to have his best game against the Eagles, as it is his most favorable match up to this point in the year. With that being said, I expect a big game from slot receiver Brayden McCaleb (12). No Tigers receiver has surpassed the century-mark this year and I expect McCaleb to break this trend.
My score prediction for this weekend's Homecoming match up is a triumphant Loveland win 48-6, pushing the Tigers over the hump and giving them their first positive record.
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