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With their 26-7 Homecoming victory tonight, the Northridge Jaguars (7-2, 4-2) secured the third-seed out of Region 4 for the playoffs in two weeks. Though McAdory (4-5, 3-3) dropped a third-straight loss, the Yellow Jackets have still secured their own playoff spot and will be the fourth-seed.

Leading the Northridge offense to victory was junior running back LiEric Street. His 117 rushing yards on 21 carries resulted in one touchdown for the Jaguars. Also scoring for the Jaguars’ offense was sophomore running back PJ Hall with 64 yards and a third-quarter score. As for passing, sophomore quarterback Kollyn Shellnut, who went 2-for-7, passed for 23 yards.

Though Northridge finished region play with a win Friday night, the Jaguars still have a roadblock before their trip to the playoffs.

“County High is a huge football team. They have one of the best backs in the state, and Jay Todd does a great job over there,” Vickery said. “They play such a tough schedule with some of the best talent in the country.”

On defense, the Jags were nearly lights out, forcing four fumbles and recovering one of them. In addition to the fumbles, McAdory junior quarterback Cameron Shepherd threw five interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns – one by freshman defensive back TJ Banks and one by senior defensive back David Livingston. Two more Shepherd passes were nearly picked off.

When asked about the defense’s job, Vickery is proud of his squad.

“We were very opportunistic tonight. When the ball is in the air, we have guys that play the football very well A couple of the interceptions were great plays and a couple fell into our lap,” Vickery said. “The difference between this year and last year is being able to make the play when it presents itself, and we’ve done a good job.”

While two of the last three McAdory games have resulted in over 80 total points, tonight was a different story. The Yellow Jackets only scored once, on a short two-play drive in the fourth quarter. Despite this, McAdory outgained Northridge 377 total offensive yards to the Jags’ 289.

Yellow Jackets quarterback Shepherd led McAdory with 208 passing yards. Shepherd went 15-for-31 with five interceptions. McAdory’s lone touchdown came from a 10-yard rush by sophomore running back Rod Thomas.

While both teams have already secured a spot in the postseason, the Northridge Jaguars still have a big non-region, crosstown matchup against Tuscaloosa County. For their first-round matchup, Northridge will travel to Saraland.

McAdory has a bye week next week and will prepare for the first week of the playoffs. The Yellow Jackets will likely travel to Spanish Fort.

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