Greene County and Morgan County, a battle of two ranked and undefeated teams, will meet this Friday in Madison.
The Tigers are off to a 3-0 start and are ranked No. 6 in Class A Division II. On the other hand, the Dogs are also 3-0 overall and ranked No. 2 in Class AA. So, this Friday’s matchup is a big game for both sides.
Greene won last year’s matchup 24-14 over Morgan, which currently leads the all-time series 31-25-1.
Morgan head coach Clint Jenkins knows the importance of the rivalry with the Tigers.
“That game goes back a long way,” Jenkins said. “You start talking to Morgan and Greene people, it means a lot.”
Greene head coach Terrance Banks agrees.
“People will say I’m just poor-mouthing, but I’ll keep saying it until I’m blue in the face,” Banks said. “Greene County should never beat Morgan County. It’s a situation where Morgan has got more boys in their building than we’ve got in our student body. It’s a situation that is often like a big brother and a little brother. We’re looking forward to the challenge of playing who I think is one of the best teams in [Class] AA.”
Both teams match up well, and the offensive units are both productive.
Morgan leads with a more balanced offensive attack, while Greene relies on the ground game to open things up through the air.
Morgan quarterback Davis Strickland is third in the state in passing. Through three games, the 6-foot-3, 195-pound signal-caller has completed 51 of 99 passes for 787 yards with nine touchdowns and only one interception.
The Dogs also have an explosive rushing attack led by Christian Monfort. The junior has rushed for 326 yards on 38 attempts and two touchdowns through two games. They have a few other productive tailbacks as well.
At receiver, Morgan senior Jaylen Elder is dangerous. He’s hauled in 20 passes for 430 yards and five scores.
“I think Morgan still wants to run the ball,” Banks said. “They have a very explosive receiver, and you must commit guys to the box to stop that running game with Monfort. Once you do that, they will throw the ball over your head. What will be key for us is to make them one-dimensional because, if not, Morgan will line up with four wide receivers [out wide] and sling it. They’re a heavy play-action team.”
Offensively, Greene is led by its running attack, which includes Khalil Dorsey, Doremus Alexander, and Amari Durham. The trio of Tigers running backs has combined to rush for 583 yards and six touchdowns this year.
Quarterback Landon Garretson has completed 33 of 46 passes for 377 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions. His favorite target is wideout Steve Miller, who has hauled in 14 passes for 172 yards and two scores this season.
“[Greene] is really athletic and big in some spots,” Jenkins said. “They’ve got a lot of good skill kids, but they’ve got some linemen, too, and they’re physical. They do a good job, so we’ve got a lot to look at with them.”
Greene and Morgan will kick off at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Bill Corry Stadium in Madison.