Stone Bridge hosts Madison with Liberty District Title on the Line

Stone Bridge hosts James Madison, Friday, 7:30 p.m.

The last two games of the season present the Stone Bridge football team with its biggest challenges of the year. This week, the Bulldogs (7-1, 5-0) host Liberty District co-leader James Madison (6-2, 5-0).

The Warhawks enter the game riding a five-game winning streak, all against district opponents. While the Bulldogs have been blowing out opponents left and right, the Warhawks are battle-tested from a slew of close games, most of which they've won. The Warhawks are 4-1 in games decided by less than 10 points, including last week's impressive 17-7 win over former district co-leader Fairfax.

Madison boasts a stout defense that has not allowed more than two touchdowns in a game since mid-September. The Warhawks defensive backfield ­– led by Max Ehrsam, Salvatore Rahner, and Walker McCandrew – limited the Fairfax passing game to less than 100 yards through the air last week.

On offense, the Warhawks rely on the dynamic rushing duo of Jacob Hall and Grant Hoffman. Hall leads the team in rushing with more than 500 yards on the ground, but Hoffman came up big last week against Fairfax with touchdown runs of 29 and 6 yards.

Although the Warhawks winning streak and defense are impressive, the Bulldog fans can strike up a chorus of "Anything you can do, we can do better." The Bulldogs enter the game on a six-game winning streak, with four straight blowout wins of district opponents. In fact, the Bulldogs have dominated every single district opponent they've played this season, with the closest game being a 22-point win over Jefferson, where Jefferson scored two late touchdowns against the Bulldog back-ups.

Stone Bridge's defense has been tough all season, despite often being put in tough situations by turnovers from the young Bulldog offense. The Bulldog starters have not given up more than one touchdown in any game since the first half of the overtime victory against Broad Run. Jonathan Allen continues his All-American campaign for the Bulldogs, and has already racked up 12 quarterback sacks. 

The Bulldogs record this season indicates they are still the most dominant team in the Liberty District. One game in particular should give Bulldog fans a warm and fuzzy feeling heading into Friday night's game: while the Warhawks squeaked by South Lakes 16-13 two weeks ago, Stone Bridge beat the Seahwaks 50-14 earlier in the season.

Prediction: Stone Bridge 45, Madison 10.