It’s been a couple of weeks since all 11 area high school football teams hit the field at the same time. On Friday, every single local team will clash under the bright lights in Week 8 action.
Three contests stand out.
The big one is Jacksonville’s Big Carolina 3-A/4-A Conference showdown with Havelock, but Richlands welcomes Croatan in a key Coastal 3-A Conference clash while White Oak hosts West Carteret in another important league game.
Who wins Friday’s Week 8 games? Here are my predictions:
Havelock (5-1, 1-1) at Jacksonville (5-0, 2-0)
A win over Havelock would not clinch the Big Carolina Conference title for Jacksonville, but it would go a long way for the Cardinals, who already have a victory over New Bern.
Havelock’s Jaylen Hewitt has completed 119 of 193 passes for 2,170 yards and 24 touchdowns, but he does have eight interceptions. The Rams also have three wide receivers with at least 27 receptions and at least 523 yards.
Jacksonville struggled at times defending the pass in wins over New Bern and West Carteret. The Cardinals found some success in those games by rushing the passer, forcing errant throws and getting sacks.
Jacksonville will also need to tackle well in space to put Havelock in long-distance downs. The Cardinals can’t afford to miss tackles because the Rams will turn those plays into big gains.
Havelock has won the last two regular season games against Jacksonville, including 28-17 last year. The Cardinals won 49-42 at Havelock in the second round in 2022.
Prediction: Havelock 34, Jacksonville 27
Croatan (4-2, 0-1) at Richlands (6-0, 1-0)Richlands faces the first of three consecutive tough Coastal Conference games in Croatan, which looks to play spoiler following last week’s 27-7 loss to White Oak.
The Wildcats are coming off their fourth shutout last week in a 42-0 triumph over Swansboro. The Cougars’ loss to White Oak last week wasn’t as lopsided as the score indicated.
Croatan is dangerous, which means they are not a team Richlands should look past. That said, the Wildcats are favored to win their third straight over the Cougars.
I look for this game to be close in the first half with Richlands something like 14-7 at the break. Then expect the Wildcats to be a little too much in the second half.
Prediction: Richlands 27, Croatan 14
West Carteret (4-2, 1-0) at White Oak (5-1, 1-0)
White Oak should be on alert against West Carteret, given the Patriots recently held their own in a 21-10 loss to Jacksonville and are coming off a 51-49 victory over Dixon.
The Patriots are better than some anticipated. West Carteret likes to pick apart defenses with its passing attack, meaning the Vikings’ secondary will be challenged.
White Oak’s defense performed well last week in a victory at Croatan and will need another good effort to hold back the Patriots in this Coastal Conference clash.
The Vikings have also had a tendency to turn the ball over. If they don’t give the pigskin up, they should be able to consistently move the chains.
Prediction: White Oak 30, West Carteret 17
Swansboro (0-5, 0-1) at Dixon (1-5, 0-1)While Dixon is 1-5, the Bulldogs could very well be 4-2, given they have lost three games by six points or less.
Dixon went toe-to-toe with West Carteret last week before falling 51-49. Look for the Bulldogs to take out their frustrations on Swansboro in a Coastal Conference game.
I expect Dixon to find the end zone twice in the first quarter and establish full control in the second quarter before slowing things down in the second half.
Playing well against the Pirates would give the Bulldogs a boost heading into conference games with White Oak, Croatan and Richlands.
Prediction: Dixon 49, Swansboro 12
South Lenoir (0-6, 0-3) at Southwest (1-6, 0-3)It’s been a tough stretch for Southwest as the Stallions have dropped three straight games.
The Stallions held their own last week before falling to Kinston 26-17. Southwest faces South Lenoir, which has also experienced its own struggles.
The Stallions will have a chance to score early in this East Central 2-A Conference game. The Blue Devils have been shut out in five of six games, meaning Southwest will have a chance to record its first shutout.
Prediction: Southwest 42, South Lenoir 0
New Bern (5-2, 2-1) at Northside (2-5, 0-3)Expect a lot of throwing in this Big Carolina Conference game as both Northside and New Bern like to put the ball in the air.
The Monarchs are coming off last week’s 41-21 loss to J.H. Rose with the 21 points being tied for the second-most points they scored this season.
The Bears have not scored less than 24 points in a game this season.
Northside needs to force turnovers and score when it has the chance to stay in this one.
Prediction: New Bern 38, Northside 20
North Lenoir (3-3, 2-0) at East Duplin (2-4, 0-2)East Duplin has been hampered by injuries, but the Panthers are a team where all they need is another win to gain momentum entering the season’s end.
The Panthers look to get that push at home in an East Central Conference game against fired up North Lenoir. The Hawks upset Wallace-Rose Hill 18-15 last week.
North Lenoir did yield 324 rushing yards against Wallace-Rose Hill. East Duplin will need to compile similar numbers and capitalize in the red zone.
The Panthers face winless South Lenoir next week, meaning a victory over North Lenoir would bode well for East Duplin as it tries to take a big step at the right time.
Prediction: East Duplin 27, North Lenoir 20
Lejeune (2-4) at Wake Prep Academy (2-4)Lejeune enters its nonconference game at Wake Prep Academy having scored 41, 66 and 32 points in its last three games.
Look for the Devilpups to continue to score the points against the Guardians, who last played on Sept. 26.
Lejeune and Wake Prep share one common foe in East Carteret. The Devilpups fell 46-32 to the Mariners last week while the Guardians fell 28-14 on Sept. 26.
Expect a high-scoring game in this one.
Prediction: Lejeune 44, Wake Prep Academy 38
Liberty Christian (2-4) at Lawrence Academy (2-5)Liberty Christian looks for its first points in two games at Lawrence Academy, which has dropped its last two.
The Heat and Warriors share two common foes in Berean Baptist and Wayne Prep. The comparison in scores favor Lawrence Academy.
Prediction: Lawrence Academy 30, Liberty Christian 18
Chris Miller can be contacted via email at cmiller@jdnews.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @jdnsports.
