The Greenville Tigers face the third of four obstacles on the road to a playoff berth Friday on the road with the Booker T. Washington Golden Eagles.

Historically, the Golden Eagles have proven no match for Greenville, as the Tigers have claimed victory in the teams’ past five meetings dating all the way back to Oct. 14, 2005.

But history has little bearing on football, as the Golden Eagles have proven consistently throughout the 2016 regular season with a series of strong performances.

Booker T. Washington sits at 4-3 and, much like the Tigers, sit on the cusp of playoff contention in a competitive Class 5A Region 2.

At present, the Golden Eagles sit at 2-3 in the region with wins over Rehobeth and Headland and losses to Eufaula, Charles Henderson and Carroll.

In many ways, Friday night’s outcome will almost certainly determine the postseason fates of the Tigers and the Golden Eagles alike.

Greenville head football coach Josh McLendon said that this year’s team is a cut above past seasons’ efforts.

“They’re good on both sides of the ball,” McLendon said.

“They’ve always been an athletic team, but we’re expecting a very, very good team, and I know that’s what we’ll get.  They’ve improved every year, and they’ve got a really good running back who’s doing a great job for them.  They’re playing good football, and I know they’re excited about the big opportunity that they have also.”

The Tigers’ goal remains the same, however—gradual, steady improvement after every game.

“We’re just trying to get better,” McLendon said. “We’re still so far away from being where we need to be, so we just want to continue to try to work, continue to grow and make those plays when we need to make them.  If we can do that, we’ll be OK.  We’ll really need to have a good week of practice and really get going.”

The Tigers hit the road once again for their third of four consecutive region games Friday.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.