High School Football Previews - Round Two

Hoggard and New Hanover will both host NCHSAA round two football playoff games on Friday.

The 10-1 Hoggard Vikings will look to continue pounding the ball on the ground. The Viking rushing attack will have to be on top of their game as Apex, 9-4, enters the game with the second ranked defense out of the Tri-7 League. Apex beat West Johnson 33-8 in their opening round contest.

Led by tailback Rashaad McDonald's 140 yards per game, the Vikings are averaging over 277 yards a game as a team. It could be another war of attriion, where they will look to wear down Apex and take control of the game in the fourth quarter.

The Hoggard defense has been improving throughout the year. While Kiarra Scott, Robert Huckabee, Casey Monaghan, and Robert McGruder were all returning players who knew they would be counted on, the progress of Ian Halkias at outside linebacker has helped solidity the Viking defense.

For New Hanover, they would have appeared to have a second round road game on the road at Greenville Rose, but the Rampants were upset by Cape Fear 31-28, giving the now higher seeded Wildcats another contest played at the friendly confines of Legion Stadium.

New Hanover played well on both sides of the ball in round one as they dominated Northern Durham in a rain soaked 32-6 win. Like Hoggard, the Wildcats have made running the ball a priority and the two headed attack of Tray Brown and Jia Partee racked up most of NHHS' 259 rushing yards against Northern Durham.

Cape Fear (Fayetteville) enters the game with a 6-6 record and have been outscored on the season by a 357-382 margin. That being said, they have played a very difficult schedule and knocked off Rose, which will get New Hanover's attention as they lost to the Rampants at home 15-14 earlier in the season.

Both games are 7:30 kickoffs... dress warm, game time temps will be in the thirties.

-- Jesse Jones, CAPE FEAR SPORTS REPORT