Trojans face pivotal game in Troy Friday

Published 11:17 pm Wednesday, October 15, 2008

The clock dwindled down in the fourth quarter last season, and the Carroll Eagles were driving the football looking to score against the Charles Henderson Trojans. The game ended with a Carroll pass sailing through an Eagle receiver’s hands in the end zone that would have won the game.

Carroll (3-4, 1-4 AHSAA Class 5A, Region 2) comes to Troy Friday night, and the Eagles will be looking for revenge.

“The key thing for us is we’ve got to worry about ourselves,” Trojans head coach Hugh Fountain said. “We just need to not turn the ball over. We need to play with intensity. We’re playing for our playoff life.”

Sign up for our daily email newsletter

Get the latest news sent to your inbox

The Eagles run a 4-3 defense, and Fountain said they are tough in the trenches.

“They have good play up front defensively,” Fountain said.

The Eagles offense is the strong point of the team. They also have an edge in the revenge category.

Quarterback A.J. Gissendanner is the same quarterback that threw the incomplete pass last season that would have beaten the Trojans.

Fullback Josh James also returns, as well as most of the Eagles skill position players on the offensive side of the ball.

The Trojans (4-3, 3-2) will have to stop the accuracy of the Eagles quarterback, and the hard running from the 230-pound fullback that is James.

Fountain said the Trojans have practiced hard for this game, and they know the importance of winning this game.

“Wednesday was a good day of practice,” Fountain said. “This is going to be a big game for us. Obviously it’s a rivalry between us and Carroll. We always want to beat Carroll, especially with them being close by. Our boys want to beat Carroll at every sport.”

The Trojans also want to win the game because it plays a very large part in how the playoff picture will play out for the Trojans this year.

“We have a lot to play for here,” Fountain said. “We can’t worry about anything but ourselves.”

Fountain said this game is a big game for the Eagles too.

“They are playing for pride in their season and they want to finish strong,” Fountain said.

Carroll has won only one region game to this point in the season on the road at Booker T. Washington. They won 34-15.

The Trojans will look to start a winning streak with their second consecutive win this Friday at home in Movie Gallery Stadium at 7 p.m.