No. 5 Scotland looks to keep it rolling in 3rd round against No. 13 Northern Nash

Nov. 14—Editor's note: Player stats from Northern Nash's second-round game against Southern Nash were unavailable when this article was written.

LAURINBURG — Scotland's recent success in the third round of the state playoffs is evident.

Since 2014, the Fighting Scots have won all five of their third-round matchups they've been in.

"We coach our kids really well, and they get better as the season goes on," Scotland head coach Richard Bailey said on his team's strong play the last few postseasons. "We are pretty good about finding an identity, sort of knowing what's got us here. As much as we get ridiculed for running the football, running the ball doesn't have an expiration date. You can run the ball indoors, outdoors, (in) bad weather, (and) good weather. And, of course, our ability to throw the ball when we need to. A lot of that is not only our players, (but) the toughness of our conference prepares us for the playoffs."

The last time the Scots made it to the third round was two years ago when they pulled off a 29-26 upset of Northern Nash, a No. 2 seed then that was 15-0 going into the game. And after falling in the second round to Terry Sanford last season, No. 5 Scotland has made it back to the third round and will once again square off with the Northern Nash Knights, a No. 13 seed this year, Friday night at Pate Stadium.

"They're a very good football team," Bailey said on Northern Nash. "We've got to find a way. We weren't supposed to beat them a couple of years ago. And I'm sure they were a little surprised by that. We won't surprise them this time. I'm sure they'll be able to use that as motivation to their kids, that we'll probably be a little bit better than some of the teams they've been playing throughout the year, or at least as good as the very best ones they've been playing."

Through 12 games, Northern Nash has just one loss, which came on Oct. 23 in a 28-21 result to Southern Nash — the fourth-seeded team they rematched and defeated 35-32 last week to advance in the playoffs; the Knights knocked off 29th-seeded Croatan in the first round.

Scotland (10-2) notched double-digit wins for the first time since 2019 and the ninth time in the last 12 seasons (excluding the 2020-21 COVID-19 season) with a 21-12 second-round win against No. 21 Southern Durham last Friday. The Scots defeated the No. 28 Rocky Mount Gryphons in the first round — Scotland's only common opponent with Northern Nash, which claimed a 59-24 win over the Gryphons on Oct. 27.

"I think now that 16 out of my 24 years that I've been coaching, we've won (at least) 10 games," Bailey said. "And some teams don't win 10 games in 20 years. We (take) it for granted, but winning 10 games is a big deal, and it's sort of what we're used to. Winning breeds winning. Our kids know how to win, our coaches know how to win, and hopefully, we keep it going."

Northern Nash returned many key players from its run to a 3A state championship game appearance against East Lincoln last season. One of the few who graduated was starting quarterback Keno Jones, who piled up 2,884 passing yards and 857 rushing yards his senior year with 54 touchdowns (15 rushing) and only nine interceptions.

While it's hard to replace that kind of production, QB Elijay Pitt (1,838 passing yards, 24 TDs, three interceptions) hasn't been shabby for the Knights. But Northern Nash hasn't relied on Pitt and the passing game as much as its run game.

"They (Northern Nash) don't throw the ball near as much as like Southern Durham does," Bailey said. "They're more like Pinecrest, to be truthful with you. Formationally, with the type of plays they run, they throw it more than Pinecrest. But as far as their running game and their approach to running the football, it's very similar to what Pinecrest does, which is an advantage that we played somebody like that."

The Knights' top rushers include running backs Dywhaun Mitchell (95 rushes, 724 yards, five TDs), Barian Strickland (36 rushes, 505 yards, six TDs), and Azariah Loring (71 rushes, 452 yards, seven TDs), who are all back from last year. Pitt has carried the rock 34 times for 166 yards and three TDs, and wide receiver Trey Battle, a player Bailey knows the Knights like to play all over the field, has toted it 33 times for 194 yards and a team-leading 11 TDs.

"(Battle) is ... a really good runner," Bailey said. "(He) is the sort of wildcat guy. That's one of their sets. They kind of do something similar to what we do. They're very good when they do it."

Battle (23 receptions, 404 yards, five TDs) is the Knights' third-best statistical receiver, with Randall King (29 receptions, 521 yards, seven TDs) and Jaquille Arrington (44 receptions, 771 yards, 12 TDs) being the only other pass-catching options with three-figure yardage numbers.

"They have at least two or three receivers (all of the previously-stated receivers) that played last year that are back," Bailey said. "(Arrington) is really good."

Northern Nash's defense has allowed only 16.25 points to its opponents, which stems from using various formations — and sometimes not doing so.

"They've been very multiple," Bailey said. "They've done 3-3 stack, which we're familiar with because that's what we do. But they've (done) a lot of four-man front. I don't know why because sometimes they do it, sometimes they don't. They do it in certain games. They do it the whole game. And so, it's very difficult for us preparing to know exactly which look ... we're going to get. So, we have to do a little bit of guessing. But we also have to make sure we're prepared for both, which makes it a little bit harder."

Because of how tricky Northern Nash can be defensively, it's helped them create turnovers. The Knights will be one of the better teams Scotland has gone up against in forcing takeaways, as they've done so 22 times (12 forced fumbles, 10 interceptions) this year.

"We always stress not turning the ball over," Bailey said. "We've been pretty good about not doing it. Friday night, Zay (Jones) had a couple of issues, but a little bit of that was done with just the tackles, that they got a hit right on the football. It happens. But the other thing is Zay's been dealing with a little bit of a hand issue. So, hopefully, we're getting that worked out this week ourselves.

"I think we've got to be aware that they are the type on film trying to strip the ball out if they get a guy held up. They get (opponents) behind, so people are throwing it to come back. Sort of like Friday night, when we know you're throwing it, you've got a better ... chance of getting a pick off. And so, I think that's probably been the biggest reason for creating so many turnovers."

Arrington (25 tackles, two tackles for loss) has accounted for three interceptions on defense, while King (11 tackles) and defensive back Garrett Graham (55 tackles, four tackles for loss) have two apiece. Strickland (31 tackles, six tackles for loss, five sacks) has three forced fumbles, and defensive linemen Sammy Huddleston (21 tackles, three tackles for loss) and C.J. Haywood (28 tackles, two tackles for loss) each have two. Linebacker Conner Baker (72 tackles, eight tackles for loss) is the Knights' leading tackler, and DL Andrew Zipko (66 tackles, nine tackles for loss, five fumble recoveries, two sacks) has the most tackles for loss.

With the Scots up against a potent defensive front, Bailey said his offense can't rely solely on its run game with Jones.

"We're going to need to throw the football," Bailey said. "Just like Friday night, we needed to throw it. Two of our three touchdowns were pass plays. It's not going to be as easy to just run the ball against a really good defense. But hopefully, we're doing it when we want to, not because we have to. If we have to do it, that's where you get those turnovers and sacks and negative plays."

Scotland and Northern Nash's lone all-time meeting was the previous third-round matchup.

Friday's game kicks off at 7:30 p.m.