The Lake Oconee Academy Titans are traveling to Woodstock this Friday to take on the Cherokee Christian Warriors at 7:30 p.m.
• Series Record: Cherokee Christian leads the series, 1-0.
• Last Meeting: Cherokee Christian defeated LOA 34-14 in 2022.
Head coach Patrick Stewart and his team came into the month of October just like they ended September – winning.
After Lake Oconee Academy defeated Augusta Prep Day last week, the Titans have won their last three contests since Sept. 22, and the team hopes they can continue this run with revenge later this week.
Cherokee Christian is currently 3-2 on the year and a member of the Georgia Association of Private and Parochial Schools (GAPPS). Stewart has been able to watch film on the Warriors and believes it is going to be a back-and-forth affair.
“Cherokee Christian is going to be a four-quarter battle,” Stewart said, “Offensively, they have a great running game, and defensively they have a similar scheme as us."
The last time these two teams faced each other, Lake Oconee Academy had just come off a one-point win over Loganville Christian Academy. The Titans were held to just over 200 total yards in that contest while giving up a little over 300 total yards to the Warriors.
Luckily for Stewart’s squad, Cherokee Christian’s quarterback and leading running back are no longer there due to graduation, so Lake Oconee Academy may be able to capitalize on the Warriors’ inexperience.
On top of that, the offense will have to be better for the Titans this time around. In last season’s installment, they allowed seven tackles for loss and turned the ball over a whopping five times.
If they want to have success on both sides of the ball, the offense will need to be protective of the pigskin while the defense needs to try and get a better field position for its playmakers. The Titans were constantly in their own half of the field in last year’s game.
This will be Lake Oconee Academy’s last contest before having back-to-back bye weeks, so Stewart knows his guys will be able to play with maximum effort before getting the rest they need before closing the season out at the end of the month.
"This is going to be a great test for our offensive line and our front seven on defense. We have to eliminate explosive plays and bring physicality," Stewart said.