Depending on who Chatham County fans root for, week seven of the high school football season either brought a sigh of relief or deflating heartbreak.
Two games involving county teams went down to the wire last week, including Seaforth and Northwood’s low-scoring battle and an overtime finish between Chatham Central and Graham.
With Northwood being the only county team to make it out of the wild Friday night with a win, the combined county-wide record now sits at 9-17 going into the new week.
The Chargers are in good playoff standing as of now, but they can improve their conference standing and compete for an automatic bid. For the rest of the county, especially Seaforth and Chatham Central, there’s less room for error in the final few games of the regular season.
Here’s a recap of Friday’s football action, a preview of next week for each county team, conference standings and the latest football power rankings:
Chatham Central
Chatham Central (1-6, 0-5) fell just short of its second win of the season in a 20-14 overtime loss to Graham (1-5, 1-3) Friday.
At the game’s final buzzer, Graham’s senior quarterback Jonathan Henry found sophomore receiver Kam Mason in the endzone for a 21-yard touchdown, successfully erasing a 14-0 deficit and sending the game to overtime.
After senior Jayvon Farrington picked off Chatham Central’s freshman quarterback Brooks Albright in the endzone on the Bears’ first overtime possession, senior running back Kadrian Brown completed the Red Devils’ comeback win on an 8-yard walk-off touchdown run.
Despite the loss, the Bears saw some offensive success early in the game with Albright connecting with junior receiver Nick Glover for two touchdown passes in the first half. They just couldn’t execute and finish drives when deep in enemy territory, which has burdened Chatham Central all season long.
The Bears will host a tough opponent in Cummings (5-1, 4-0) Friday at 7 p.m. The Cavaliers will be fresh off a bye week and look to establish its strong rushing attack against a Chatham Central defense that has struggled to stop the run at times this year.
Chatham Central will need to emphasize tackling and finishing drives with points if it wants to pull off the upset.
Jordan-Matthews
Jordan-Matthews (2-5, 1-4) got shutout for a third straight game in a 56-0 loss to Southeast Alamance (6-0, 4-0) Friday.
The Stallions scored in a plethora of ways, including three touchdown passes, one rushing score, two fumble recoveries taken back for touchdowns, a punt return and a kickoff return.
The Jets haven’t been shutout in three straight games since 2021. After a 2-2 start, Jordan-Matthews has been in a downhill slide mainly due to injuries and key players missing games.
Jordan-Matthews will have a bye Friday and get a week of rest before hosting Bartlett Yancey on Oct. 18 at 7 p.m.
Seaforth
Following the close loss to Northwood, Seaforth (2-3, 2-2) will host North Moore (2-4, 2-2) Friday at 7 p.m.
The Hawks could very well have a successful bounce-back game against the Mustangs, who are having one of their worst seasons in recent years.
However, North Moore’s wing-t and run-heavy offense can still present a challenge, and Seaforth’s defense will have to be prepared for another physical matchup.
Offensively, the key to a win will be to take care of the ball and establish the run. Seaforth needs more production on the ground outside of its sophomore quarterback Duncan Parker.
Northwood
Northwood (4-3, 4-1) will host Graham Friday at 7 p.m.
The Chargers will be looking for their fourth straight win of the season while tuning up against a team that has given up more than 50 points in five of its six contests this season.
Northwood will just have to not overlook Graham and put the game away early as a big conference showdown with Cummings will be looming.
Power Rankings
Last week: 1. Northwood; 2. Seaforth; 3. Chatham Central; 4. Jordan-Matthews
This week’s rankings: 1. Northwood; 2. Seaforth; 3. Chatham Central; 4. Jordan-Matthews