The gauntlet of tough opponents continues for the Greenville Tigers as they hit the road Friday to face the Eufaula Tigers.

The region battle between the two teams is a historically fierce one.  Victory went to Eufaula in 2016, but Greenville won in the two meetings prior to that.

This year’s matchup seems just as fierce, as both teams seek to improve to 2-1 in a difficult region.

As last week’s narrow battle between Eufaula and Carroll—the sole undefeated team remaining in the region—clearly illustrated, Greenville will have its hands full this weekend with a well-rounded Eufaula team.

“They’re sound on both sides of the ball and the kicking game,” said Greenville head football coach Josh McLendon.  “They’re well coached, and they want to run the football.  Coach Moore does a good job with that, and defensively they’re good up front on the defensive line and at linebacker.

“It’s going to be tough for us.  We’ve just got to go play hard and be able to execute in every thing that we do.  If we do that, then we’ve got a chance.”

A tough fight could be made tougher thanks to a cloud of uncertainty looming over Friday night in the form of an injured Bishop Riley, who hurt his leg on a kickoff return in the first quarter against Wetumpka last Friday.

“Bishop is day to day, and we’ll reevaluate him later in the week,” McLendon said.  “I expect him to play Friday night.”

Greenville will face a potent run game in Eufaula, and also a disciplined defense capable of shutting down the run.

“I think they’re at the top of the region,” McLendon said. “They’ve got their run game and what they like to do, and I think they like to play-action off some of that. So they do a good job of accomplishing what they want to do. 

“I feel like it’s going to be a tough test for us, and we’ll have to do the things on the road that you have to do to win. And that’s not turning the ball over and not giving up big plays.  And if you do that, you have a chance to be in the game in the fourth quarter and you have a chance to win.”