Saturday’s matchup between undefeated West Georgia and Valdosta State will be a season-defining game for the conference rivals.
The Wolves (5-0) face a conference rival in the Blazers (3-1) that suffered a huge loss to North Alabama last weekend.
A win for the No. 2 Wolves puts one of their toughest opponents behind them on the schedule, while the No. 21 Blazers need this win to keep their playoff hopes alive after a huge loss to North Alabama last weekend.
Home-field advantage hasn’t been kind to the Wolves (5-0) during this rivalry, which the teams renew at 2 p.m. Saturday in Carrollton.
“We haven’t beaten them at home in 17 years,” Wolves coach Will Hall said. “that’s a big barrier right there we’ve got to overcome.”
Given their poor history hosting the Blazers (3-1), it doesn’t help to remember that last year the Blazers rebounded from a 29-34 loss to North Alabama to give the Wolves their first loss in 2014, after they started 5-0.
“They’re a top-10 team that lost to another top-10 team and somehow fell all the way to 21,” Hall said. “They’re a really good football team.”
West Georgia senior quarterback Dallas Dickey is well aware of the importance of this game. The whole team remembers what happened last year and are focused on taking care of business, he said.
“We know what happened last year during the regular season, and we’re going to remember that and use that to hopefully not let that happen again,” Dickey said.
To start the season, the Wolves have dominated their opponents in yardage and on the scoreboard. The team has accumulated 1,025 rushing yards compared with their opponents 378 and 1,162 passing yards to 586. West Georgia has scored 222 points and allowed only 61.
“I’ve been impressed and pleased with how our chemistry has been,” Hall said. “But it gets real this week, playing by far the best team we’ve played, and so we’re obviously going to have to step our game up a little bit.”
The Blazers have done well this season, outscoring opponents 120-70 and averaging 30 points per game. The team averages 137.8 rushing yards per game and 233.35 yards per game passing.
The team has recorded 13 sacks and five forced fumbles. Hall pointed out that the Blazers defensive line as one of the teams’ strengths.
“Their D-line does a really good job holding the point of attack,” he said. “Their two inside linebackers Kenny Murphy and Sharmaine Washington are really extremely physical. (They) play the game the way it’s supposed to be played.”
This weekend will be the first true test of the season for West Georgia and a must-win for Valdosta State. The Gulf South rivalry matchup will impact the fate of the season for both of these teams.
“They’re our rival, so each and every year we play them it’s going to be a slobber-knocker game,” Dickey said. “They’re going to bring it, and we’re going to bring it.”
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