The Pike County Bulldogs return home after two road games to take on the Wicksburg Panthers.

The Bulldogs (2-1, 2-0) are excited to return home and play in front of the home fans for the first time since the regular season opener against Alabama Christian.

“We feel pretty good,” said head coach Fred Holland. “We have been playing pretty decent; we’re still improving. We’re just glad to be back at home again. It’s been tough playing on the road for the last two weeks. Our guys are pretty excited about being back home.”

The Bulldogs lost their home opener 16-0 to Alabama Christian, but since then, they have won their last two games by a total of 37 points. The biggest difference between the last two games and the season opener has been offensive production. Between their loss to Charles Henderson in the jamboree and their loss to Alabama Christian, the Bulldogs scored a total of 6 points. In their past two wins, they scored a total of 66.

“We have done pretty good offensively,” Holland said. “We kind of simplified it a little more. The players and the coaches are excited about it. We are still making strides and we are trying to get better each week. It’s been showing in the game. Overall, I think we have been playing better.”

The defense has been a strength for the Bulldogs throughout the season. They have allowed just 15 points per game in their three official games.

“We are playing better,” Holland said. “We still have a long way to go. Some of the guys are doing a better job of understanding what teams are doing. We do a lot to try and simplify the offense to make defense easier. We are doing a better job at recognizing defenses.”

The Panthers (1-2, 0-2) will bring a big offensive and defensive line to Brundidge this evening.

“I feel like they are going to run straight at us,” Holland said. “They have some big linemen and they are going to try and neutralize our speed. We will have a tall task ahead of us trying to slow them down. They may have lost the last two region games, but they are a good football team, a well-coached football team.”

The Panthers and Bulldogs last met in 2015. The Bulldogs got the better of the Panthers 47-8.

Kick is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Bulldogs Stadium.