With a win, Southern would be last perfect team in PAC-6 play

BY JOE JOHNSON

jjohnson@heraldsun.com; 419-6667

The PAC-6 may have a clear-cut favorite pending the outcome of Southern's visit to Riverside tonight, while Orange can keep pace in the Carolina 6 3-A and Northwood will look to take control of the Carolina 9 1-A/2-A.

The Spartans (7-1, 3-0 PAC-6) will face their last undefeated conference opponent in Riverside (4-3, 2-0). Southern is coming off an impressive win over Jordan last week and the Pirates held off winless Northern.

"It ought to be a good ball game," Riverside coach Todd Spell said. "It will be good for us to be at home but Southern is used to playing big-time games in hostile environments."

Spell said the thing that worried him most about Southern is the same thing that has caused other teams trouble -- the Spartans' speed.

"They're fast and aggressive," Spell said. "That's the biggest thing. If we can run like we've been able to in the last couple of games then maybe we can control the ball and control the clock."

Hillside (4-3, 1-1 PAC-6) will travel to Jordan (5-3, 2-1) for game that will keep one of the teams near the top of the standings.

Jordan, which suffered a fairly complete loss at Southern is looking to bounce back, according to Coach Mike Briggs. But the challenge this week for the Falcons will be almost completely different than the one they faced a week ago. Briggs said Hillside's size was the thing that jumped out most about the Hornets.

"Hillside is big. They're huge," Briggs said. "They're not as much of a finesse team as Southern but they're going to be tough. We've got to be ready because they're pretty straight forward on both offense and defense."

The Hornets put together a stout defensive performance last week by holding Person to only a field goal in their 17-3 win.

Northern (0-8, 0-3 PAC-6) and East Chapel Hill (0-7, 0-2) will produce the first win of the season for one of these teams. Both teams have been close to getting a victory but neither has been able to pull through in the end.

Oxford Webb (3-4, 1-0 Carolina 6 3-A) will visit Orange (4-3, 1-0) in a game that will allow one of the teams to remain atop the conference standings.

Orange is coming off a grinding 34-14 win over Northern Vance in which the Panthers racked up over 220 rushing yards as a team. Orange coach Pat Moser said it would require a good defensive effort by his team to beat Webb.

"They've won a lot of ballgames," Moser said. "It's going to be a big challenge. Their strength is on their lines. We're going to have to play well on defense because we're not as big as them up front. Our offense is getting better and the players are understanding what they're doing better."

Chapel Hill (2-5, 0-1 Carolina 6 3-A) will be at Norther Vance as both teams try to get their first conference victory.

Northwood (8-0, 1-0 Carolina 9 1-A/2-A) will visit Carrboro (3-4, 0-1) and try to get a leg up in the conference race.

The other league game has Cedar Ridge (5-2, 0-0) traveling to Granville Central (0-8, 0-1). Cedar Ridge was off last week and Coach Lou Geary said he has concerns about his team being completely focused and ready to play. Granville Central has struggled this season and Geary said he knows what they've been going through.

"It reminds me of when we started our program," Geary said. "We took some lumps but in the long run it was worth it to have a team. They have a good coach and that's what you need. We're excited to get going in the conference, though. It's important to get wins in the conference."