Well-rested pack of ‘Dogs… Hampton set to get back into gridiron action against ‘Horns after a bye week
Published 11:05 am Tuesday, September 22, 2020
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File Photo/Ivan Sanders The Class 2A 10th ranked Hampton Bulldogs are coming off their bye week and have a tough game on the road at Johnson County. Head Coach Mike Lunsford will be counting heavily on his seniors the rest of the way to take the 2020 Bulldogs into postseason play.
File Photo/Ivan Sanders Head coach Michael Lunsford said in the preseason that he was counting on Aidan Vines to provide leadership to the 2020 team. Thus far, Vines has done just that as the Bulldogs sit at 3-0 heading into Friday night's contest at Johnson County.
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BY NIC MILLER
STAR CORRESPONDENT
HAMPTON – It was yet another exciting week of football in Carter County last Friday as all of the football teams in the area, Cloudland, Unaka, Happy Valley, and Elizabethton, won their respective football matchups by a combined score of 185-30.
However, one football team, the Hampton Bulldogs were able to catch up on some much-needed rest to prepare for a tough road test against the Johnson County Longhorns as Hampton just moved into the Tennessee prep rankings as the #10 team in Class 2A.
Two weeks ago, when the Bulldogs played last, they faced off against county rival Cloudland and snagged a road victory from the Highlanders in an impressive 34-12 bout.
But now the Bulldogs will experience a road trip that seems like ages to face off with a team that is so close to the region.
The Johnson County Longhorns come into this matchup splitting the season thus far with a 2-2 record overall and a 1-1 mark in conference play.
Whereas the Hampton Bulldogs come into this game holding an undefeated 3-0 record overall, with their first game against Gatlinburg-Pittman being cancelled, as well as an undefeated 1-0 mark in league play, beating Unicoi County, Happy Valley, and Cloudland in succession through the past month.
The Bulldogs come into this matchup with a high-powered offense that contains both speed and power. The Hampton offense this season has been remarkable, outscoring their opponents 94-19.
This scoring differential must also pay homage to the defense, as the Bulldogs have a defensive front seven that stuffs the run and a defensive back corps that can prevent the long ball when needed.
With the temperature changing around the region, it will be more than just the play that will determine the outcome of this one.
Johnson County is at a higher elevation than that of Carter County, meaning the Bulldogs will need to adapt to lower temperatures than normal.
The fans will just have to see how this one plays out, as it is guaranteed to be a contest that will be filled with action and may even go down to the wire.
Kickoff for this matchup between the Bulldogs and the Longhorns is set for 7:30 p.m at Johnson County High School in Mountain City.
