The Oxford Yellow Jackets and the Rock Show travel to Bob Jones to take on the Patriots at Madison City Schools Stadium Friday night in the second round of the AHSAA 6A playoffs.
Both teams come into the games with wins in round one. Oxford defeated Tuscaloosa County 50-22 while Bob Jones defeated Hewitt-Trussville 21-12 last week.
Oxford comes into the game on a roll. They dropped their first two games of the season, then have realed off nine straight wins. "Our whole team has just got better since day one," said Oxford Head coach Ryan Herring. "We went through different lineups especially on defense. Getting our running back healthy was a huge. New coaching staff and everything was a little different from the past season. We have good kids that want to win."
On offense, you start with the running game. Racean "Roc" Thomas has rushed for 2,130 yards on 204 attempts and 31 touchdowns. Thomas averages 10.4 yards per carry. A first down everytime he touches the ball. Junior offensive lineman Noah Lynch has been opening holes for the Yellow Jackets run game. "Noah has done a great job all season," added Herring. "He does a great job pulling and face guarding. He has been steady all year long."
The Oxford passing game goes under radar but quarterback Ty Webber has played well for the Yellow Jackets. The junior QB has completed 116-of-185 for 1,714 yards & 19 touchdowns. Webber has a couple of receivers in the Oxford offense. Tredarian Gamble, Desmond Owens, and Jacob Cook can all make big plays for the Yellow Jackets offense.
On defense, Oxford defensive back Octavious Davis had a big interception along with Dylan Sipplin returned a fumble for a touchdown last week against Tuscaloosa County.
For Bob Jones, the battle the looks to be an interesting look is the Oxford run game versus the Bob Jones front seven. Linebacker Nick Holman looks to stop the Oxford run game. "Nick has played well all season," said Bob Jones Head coach Kevin Rose. "Christian Hess has been outstanding at corner. Teams take shots at him at corner but he is always in good position. Our defensive as a whole has played well. We have to get a stop or turnover on defense."
On offense for Bob Jones, the Patriots have quarterback Jeremy Frye. "He has made play after play after play," added Rose. "He has moved the football team down the field, brought us from behind, makes plays with his feet and has made big throws." Frye has completed 103-170 passes for 1,424 yards and 14 touchdowns. He has rushed for 424 yards on 79 carries and three touchdowns.
A couple of key players for the Patriots offense have been Ryan Crooks and Jay Rogers. They have been solid all season. Crooks has 63 catches for 676 yards and four touchdowns with 93 carries for 537 yards and eight touchdowns. Rogers has eight catches for 136 yards and two touchdowns with 920 yards on 141 carries and five touchdowns. Rogers averages 6.5 yards per carry and has the power to run between the tackles.
