Familiar District 9-3A foes meet at 7 tonight in Loranger when the Pearl River Rebels travel to face the Wolves in non-district action. Pearl River now competes in District 9-4A.
Last season, Loranger defeated the Rebs, 20-13.
 Pearl River defensive back Matt Wilkerson (81) goes in for a tackle on Pine running back Cordarrel Carter in the first quarter of last Friday's game in Pine. (Daily News File Photo by Jacob Brooks) |
Both teams run the Wing-T, but Loranger throws the ball more. The Wolves have thrown the ball 42 times this season, while hitting on 24 of them.
Pearl River coach Joe Harris said his team needs to stop the Wolves' tough passing game.
The quarterback is junior Taylor Abdalla. He has hit on 24-of-40 pass attempts for 394 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions.
His main targets are seniors Lionel Lewis and L.J. Holland. Lewis leads the team with 11 receptions for 238 yards (21.6 average) and three touchdowns. Holland is second on the squad with eight catches for 109 yards (13.6 average) and a score.
Pearl River will challenge Loranger's offense with an aggressive defense anchored by junior middle linebacker Stephen Arthur, who Harris said leads the team in tackles. Arthur blocked a punt last week and returned it 40 yards for a score.
Offensively, Harris feels the Rebels need to control the clock. Pearl River is led by sophomore running back James Guillum, who ran 18 times for 170 yards with three touchdowns last week, 130 in the second half. He also had a 70-yard run called back on a penalty. This season, Guillum has run for 694 yards in three games. Loranger sixth-year coach Sam Messina said the young back is a force to be reckoned with.
"Guillum's a good back with all the tools to be successful," Messina said.
Messina said his defense will be in for a challenge against the Wing-T.
"You have to stick with your reads and your keys. You can't take too many chances because of the misdirection plays," Messina said.
He added that his team will know where Guillum is at all times but also has to be aware of the other weapons in the backfield.
The other running backs are junior William Reed and sophomore Jeremiah Levy. They will see carries, but Guillum will be the featured back.
The quarterback is junior Matt Smith. His main target is junior wide receiver Jacob Maxwell, who also plays defensive back. Last week, it was Maxwell's defense that came to the forefront, when he intercepted a pass and brought it back 65 yards to pay dirt.
Senior Matt Wilkerson will also be looking to make plays from his defensive back position.
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