MOUNT VERNON — The Yellow Jackets are on a roll.
Mount Vernon will look for its third straight win on Friday when winless Watkins Memorial invades Yellow Jacket Stadium.
MV hasn’t won three straight games since the final three weeks of the pandemic-altered 2020 season, finishing 5-4. Mount Vernon won its first four games to open the 2019 season en route to a 6-4 finish.
Last week’s 37-0 win over Zanesville was the program’s first shutout since the final week of the 2020 season, a 27-0 win over Newark.
Meanwhile, East Knox will try for its fourth straight win.
The Bulldogs host unbeaten Northmor in a key Knox Morrow Athletic Conference showdown.
Here’s a look at this weekend’s two marquee games:
Watkins Memorial (0-6, 0-1) at Mount Vernon (2-4, 1-0)
The Division I Warriors fell to unbeaten Granville 31-14 last week as the Blue Aces scored 17 fourth-quarter points. Watkins managed just 160 yards of total offense and mustered only 36 rushing yards. Junior quarterback Drew Samsal, who threw for 1,886 yards and 19 touchdowns last year, recently returned from injury and hopes to jump-start the Warriors’ offense.Â
The Yellow Jackets raced to a 21-0 first-quarter lead and never looked back in the win over Zanesville. Running back Mavrik Gregory rushed for 121 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while quarterback Jake Taylor threw for 190 yards. A senior, Taylor has completed 54-of-111 passes for 746 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for 240 yards and four TDs on 62 carries. Gregory has 364 yards and three TDs on 47 carries. Senior wideout Luke Hubbard has 16 receptions for 240 yards and two touchdowns. Senior linebacker Ayden Kennedy leads the defense with 63 tackles. Alex Taylor and Anthony Roenker each have three sacks.Â
Northmor (6-0, 3-0) at East Knox (4-2, 3-0)
The Knights had their hands full with Fredericktown in a 19-6 win. Northmor quarterback A.J. Bower leads the KMAC with 1,093 passing yards and 15 touchdowns while completing 52-of-83 attempts. Cowin Becker is one of the KMAC’s most productive players, accounting for more than 1,100 all-purpose yards. Becker has rushed for 486 yards and eight touchdowns on 55 carries, 19 receptions for 361 yards and six TDs, returned seven kicks for 212 yards and a score and brought back four punts for 47 yards. Bo Landin has 12 catches for 342 yards and three touchdowns, while Jax Wenger has seven grabs for 182 yards and three scores. Garrett Deisch leads the defense with 51 tackles. Ashton Clark and Cameron Goldbach each have four sacks, tied for fourth in the KMAC. Clark has 9.5 tackles for loss.
The Bulldogs beat Mount Gilead 20-0 last week behind quarterback Jaxon Lester, who completed 20-of-34 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns in adverse weather conditions. Logan Clark had five receptions for 64 yards, including a 22-yard TD in the second quarter. Shane Gardner had two catches, both going for TDs. He hauled in a 53-yarder from Lester in the first quarter and caught a 3-yard TD pass from Blake Elliott in the third. Elliott, is the KMAC’s leading rusher with 930 yards and eight touchdowns on 141 carries. He also ranks second in the KMAC with 85 tackles from his linebacker position. Parker Kimball has 73 stops, while Landon Dawson ranks among conference leaders with five tackles for loss and three sacks.