ST. XAVIER (1-0) AT BOWLING GREEN (2-0)
* Kickoff: 8 p.m. EDT.
* Storyline: Purples look to avenge only loss from 2015.
* St. Xavier: Down 28-0 early in the second quarter, the Tigers rallied for a 42-28 victory at Lexington Catholic last week. Senior running back Sam Taylor had a huge game, rushing for 254 yards and three touchdowns on 34 carries. Junior quarterback Jack Albers (10 of 21, 75 yards, one TD) will get his second straight start as senior Desmond Ridder serves the second game of a two-game suspension.
* Bowling Green: The defending Class 5-A state champion beat Christian County 42-22 last week as senior quarterback Clark Payne completed 20 of 27 passes for 254 yards and four touchdowns. Senior running back Jamale Carothers (Navy commit) rushed for 113 yards and a touchdown and also caught five passes for 124 yards and two scores. The Purples are 71-3 over their past 74 games, including a 4-1 record against St. X. The Tigers won last year’s meeting 45-19.
* Quotable: “Sam (Taylor) is a senior and a leader, and he brings it every time,” Tigers coach Will Wolford said. “The kids really feed off him. Even though we were down and some teams might start throwing it around, we stuck to the run game because Sam is the heartbeat of the team right now.”
* The pick: Bowling Green 28-21.