A historic Greensboro city schools matchup and a state semifinal rematch top this week’s high school football games to watch.
1. Page (3-1, 0-0) at
Dudley (2-3, 1-0), 7 p.m.Dudley has won eight straight in this series of classic Greensboro city schools and is 17-4 since coach Steven Davis, a former Page assistant, took over as Panthers head coach. Last year’s 53-7 win was the biggest margin of victory for either team during that 21-season span. The last time that Page won was in 2016, when the Pirates stopped Hendon Hooker just shy of the goal line late in the 23-22 victory.
In a Metro 6A/7A Conference game featuring Triad top 10 teams, Page is enjoying its best start to a season since 2017, while Dudley’s losses have already surpassed its total losses over the past two seasons. This game should be a great measuring stick to determine if Page has truly arrived in the Triad’s top echelon, if Dudley is better than its record or if both are indeed true. Regardless, Grimsley is still the conference’s favorite, but this game could easily decide second place and could place the winner in the driver’s seat for conference championship contention with the Whirlies late in the season.
Dudley, which ran a spread offense under former offensive coordinator Antonio Hall, is operating the wishbone this season, running 68.4% of the time compared to 56.9% last year and could look to control the clock. At the same time, it must eliminate Page’s big-play offense that has averaged 6.6 yards per carry and 10.4 yards per pass attempt during its three-game winning streak.
Dudley running back Michael Boone Jr. rushed for a season-high 204 yards last week against Ragsdale after averaging 62.25 in the team’s four previous games, while Page quarterback Zamari Williamson threw for a season-high 213 yards and five touchdowns after the Pirates’ quarterback production had heavily leaned on dual-threat Anthony Johnson previously.
2. Trinity Christian (3-0, 0-0) at High Point Christian (4-0, 0-0), 7 p.m.The rematch of last year’s independent Division II semifinal, which Trinity won, 50-44, also pits two undefeated teams against each other in a game between two of the top three ranked teams within the classification and a potential playoff preview.
HPCA hasn’t been tested much this year, beating opponents by an average of 28.25 points. The Cougars come off a bye week, while Trinity had a 43-6 blowout win over Covenant Day last week.
Their common opponent is Metrolina Christian, whom Trinity defeated, 20-13, on Aug. 22; HPCA beat Metrolina, 35-0, the following week. Trinity’s toughest task will be containing the Triad’s leader rusher, Jaylen Moore, who has averaged 218 yards per game for the Cougars, while its offense hopes last week’s offensive splurge is a sign of improvement after having to replace Elijiah Oehlke, a freshman quarterback at Wake Forest, and two receivers who graduated after 1,000-plus-yard seasons.
3. Western Guilford (4-1, 1-0) at Grimsley (4-0, 1-0), 7 p.m.The rematch of a 2024 first-round playoff game is the second conference game for both teams. For the second consecutive season, Western enters the regular season conference matchup with Grimsley at 4-1, hopes to reach five wins for the first time since 2019 and looks to work its way to a winning record for the first time since 2008.
To beat Grimsley, the Hornets will have to maintain a successful running game led by senior Timothy Baker and dual-threat quarterback Caleb Moore. The biggest challenge may be holding the Whirlies’ freshman sensation quarterback Brody Lowe, who has completed 67.7% of his passes for 868 yards and eight touchdowns in three games played and is already receiving major Division I attention from schools like North Carolina and Florida State.
Last year, Grimsley defeated Western, 48-0, in the regular season and 63-0 in the playoffs.
4. Carver (5-0, 1-0) at Reidsville (3-2, 1-0), 7 p.m.Carver is 5-0 for the first time since 2002, the year it went 15-0-1 and won a state championship, but is still underdog against Reidsville, whose 70-game conference winning streak goes back to 2011.
Reidsville will have more depth; the Yellowjackets have only 39 players on their roster. Based on history, Carver could come out in a variety of offensive formations including the shotgun, split backs, and the wing-t. Defensively, the Yellowjackets have seven interceptions, led by Derrick Reid Jr.’s three, but face the toughest passing attack they’ll see all season with Reidsville’s five-star tight end Kendre Harrison and fellow Division I recruit Dionte Neal, who’s signed to play basketball at UNC Greensboro.
5. Southwest Guilford
(1-4, 0-1) at Smith (1-3, 0-1), 7 p.m.Despite there still being plenty of season left, this matchup feels like a must-win for both teams if they are to have any outside chance of reaching the playoffs.
Southwest has to move on from a 65-0 loss to Grimsley, while Smith hopes to reverse a trend after three straight losses since its season-opening win over Southern Guilford. Smith is expected to have running back Darius Chukwuemeka in the lineup after missed the Western Guilford game due to a concussion.
Other Area GamesBartlett Yancey at Morehead, 7 p.m.; CPLA at South Davidson, 7 p.m.; High Point Central at Central Davidson, 7 p.m.; Ledford at Andrews, 4 p.m. on Sat.; McMichael at Southwestern Randolph, 7:30 p.m.; Rockingham County at Walkertown, 7 p.m.
Bryant.roche@greensboro.com
@BRocheSports
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Bryant Roche
High School Sports Reporter
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