Northshore’s Panthers head to Hammond tonight, looking for their second consecutive win and will face the Tornadoes in a District 7-5A contest.

NHS (3-1) comes into action with a 1-1-district record, while Hammond (0-3) is 0-2 in district competition.

The Panthers are coming off a 14-13 win over Fontainebleau, while Hammond suffered a 42-7 defeat against St. Paul’s.

Northshore Panther defenders stop a Fontainebleau ball carrier during a district game held last Thursday at NHS. (File Photo by James Elorriaga)

Despite Hammond’s record, Northshore coach Mike Bourg isn’t overlooking the Tornadoes.

Bourg said he doesn’t look at a team’s mark, instead he looks at film and what he hears from others.

“We’re coming off a big win and we have to play just as hard as we did against Fontainebleau,” Bourg said. “Every game in this district is crucial and every team is good. Hammond has a lot of good athletes and can hurt you in the drop of a hat.”

In last season’s contest, Northshore won, 6-3, in a game dominated by field goals. Wesley Baylor’s 44-yard kick with just over four minutes left, gave NHS the lead for good.

In last week’s game, it was the offense and special teams scoring early, then the defense hanging on late. With 28 seconds left in the game, Fontainebleau lined up for a game-tying extra point, but a bad snap forced the Bulldogs’ holder to attempt a pass, which would have put FHS ahead. Instead Jimmy Wentworth came up with a big play when he knocked the pass down as Northshore won the game. Bourg talked about Wentworth, who had four tackles and an assist last week.

“He’s a real good player,” Bourg said. “Jimmy might be able to play on the next level. He’s just as good on offense, but we need him on defense.”

In last week’s game, senior linebackers Chris Ruiz and Chris Wade each led the team with seven stops. Junior middle linebacker

Taylor Eads recorded six tackles, one for loss and two assists.

Defensive back Quinn Johnson tallied four tackles and a pass defensed. Linebacker Alex Black posted four tackles and an assist, while lineman Chris Faulk had four tackles, one for loss. They will be facing an offense that runs the power-I.

The Tornadoes’ quarterback is sophomore Trevor Ragan. This season, he has thrown for 176 yards and a score.

One of the running backs is junior Justin Betts, who also plays linebacker. Last week, he ran for 43 yards.

Hammond coach Rusty Barrilleaux is hoping to get senior running back Torian Weber back. Two weeks ago, Weber suffered a finger injury against Fontainebleau.

Offensively, the Panthers run a spread offense. The quarterback is junior Jervious Epherson, who has speed and a good arm.

Barrilleaux said Hammond needs to contain Epherson.

“He’s the man, a good athlete and he finds the hole,” Barrilleaux said. “Then the running back he gives to isn’t too bad either. You have to account for both guys. But they’re not afraid to chunk the ball downfield. We have a good task in front of us.”

The running back is senior Channing Wise. Last week, he carried the ball 17 times and gained 163 yards. This season, Wise 524 yards rushing and four touchdowns.

After Justin Walker took the opening kickoff for a 93-yard score, Wise tallied on NHS’ first play from scrimmage with an 89-yard run to put his team up 14-0 in the first quarter.

When Epherson looks to throw, his main target is senior Archie Ambo. The other receivers are senior Andrew Cossé, junior Adam Chopin and sophomore Breck Kline.

They will be going against a defense that runs various sets, but mostly out of the 4-2-5. Barrilleaux said linebacker Betts has played well for his club.