Andy Jackson | rrspin.com
The Roanoke Rapids Yellow Jackets will travel down east to Tarboro on Friday night to face what some call the beast from the East.
The Tarboro Vikings come in to Friday night’s game, with a 12-0 record following a first round, 47-0, win over Pasquotank.
The Vikings are the current defending N.C. division 2A champs. The last home loss that Tarboro had dates back to September 21, 2007, when Southwest Edgecombe defeated them 28-14.
Coach Jeff Craddock will be fielding a team that has team speed and depth at the skill positions.
Jamias Williams has great hands and foot speed at the quarterback position and he executes the offense with great precision. Todd Gurley is a workhorse in the backfield and at 6 feet 2 inches and 190 pounds, he has great speed. The Vikings have scored 458 points this season and the defense, which is led by defensive end Chris Lane, has allowed only 164 points.
The Yellow Jackets are 11-1 and they are coming off a first round playoff win over Northside where they defeated the Monarchs 56-0.
The Jackets faced Tarboro earlier in the year and came up short, 42-35. The Jackets threw a couple of key interceptions in that game that made the difference.
Since that game, Jackets quarterback Justin Rawles has caused problems for defenses with his running and passing ability.
The Jackets have scored 566 points and the Jacket defense has surprised everyone by allowing only 134 points. Chris Lyons, Bryan Dean and Ryan Howell have really stepped up their play.
Many Jacket and Viking fans feel like the winner of this game could go to the state championship. The key to this game will be execution, special teams and turnovers. If the Jackets can avoid turnovers and maintain good coverage on special teams they could pull off one of the biggest upsets in school history.
The Jackets have a team that has enjoyed rewriting history this year at the high school. They have already gone in the history books for the most wins by any Jacket team. These two teams are currently ranked in most polls in the top ten. The Jackets will take one of the best offensive lines in 2A ball to Tarboro. The kick off will be at 7:30 p.m.
Admission is $7 Friday night. Starting Tuesday, you can buy a ticket for the game from Tim Bennett in the athletic director’s office located in the gym.
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