Baldwin’s toughest test yet will come Oct. 15, when the Braves travel to Lagrange to take on the Troup County Tigers.
The Tigers are 6-0 and ranked No. 1 in GHSA Class AAAA post-season rankings. The Braves got back on track two weeks ago with their shutout win over Upson-Lee, but the Tigers present a tough matchup on both sides of the football.
“A very good team,” head coach Kevin Patterson said. “Great athletes and also well coached. We will have to play well in order to win. We can’t make mistakes and beat ourselves. They have done a good job this season taking advantage of opponents’ mistakes.”
Baldwin is hoping its most recent bye week works out better than its first one.
The Braves’ first bye week of the season came prior to the Howard game, and the Braves came out completely flat in that one, falling behind 35-0 in the second quarter.
The Tigers have one of the state’s highest-scoring offenses, having tallied 237 points through six games. Their offense is driven by running back Javarris Warner, who is currently averaging 199 rushing yards per game. Warner has scored 12 touchdowns this season.
However, the Troup defense is what sets them apart from most teams in the state. The Tigers have surrendered just 55 points this season and posted three shutouts, allowing no more than three touchdowns in any game so far.
But, the Braves’ strength this season has been great offense, and that is just what the Braves will have to play if they are going to beat the Tigers on Thursday.
Quarterback Kamden Patterson has been the engine to the Braves offense, leading AAAA in passing yardage with 1,894 yards, the fourth-most yards among all QBs in the state.
“Take what the defense gives us and sustain drives,” Patterson said. “A balanced attack should help our chances. Ultimately, we have to make plays some kind of a way along with protecting the football. It will take a team effort.”
The Braves have had plenty of time to prepare for the Tigers, and Patterson said the time off will benefit his team with a short and simple comment.
“I’d only hope so, time tells all,” he said.
However, the Braves have a slightly shorter time to prepare for this week’s game being played Thursday night in LaGrange.
However, Patterson said he doesn’t believe the short week will affect his team.
“Not really, we have tried to keep things as normal as possible and as best we can from a preparation standpoint,” he said. “The schedule is what it is and we can only try to control the controllables.”
The Braves and Tigers will meet Thursday at 7 p.m. at Callaway Stadium in LaGrange. The game can be watched on nfhsnetwork. com, where a subscription costs $13 monthly.