Second round playoff preview: Rome at River Ridge

A team on a historic run will face one of the state's traditional powers this Friday in Woodstock. <strong>Game:</strong> Rome (8-3) at River Ridge (10-0) <strong>Previous meeting:</strong> Rome won 55-6 <strong>Series:</strong> Rome leads 2-0 <strong>Prediction:</strong> Rome 24, River Ridge 21 <strong>Players to watch: </strong> Rome — RB E.J. Lackey, QB Reece Fountain, WR Jay Wise, OLB Bryant Wilkinson, OLB Jameion Leath River Ridge — RB Amehre Morrison, DL Brian Bradley, ATH Scotty Rutherford, WR/TE Jackson Head, QB Carson Lathem <strong>Preview:</strong> A last-second win gave River Ridge its first-ever playoff win last week and now the Knights will look to knockoff one of the most successful programs in the state. Rome (8-3) will travel to River Ridge (10-0) this Friday for the second round of the AAAAAA playoffs. The Knights are the lone remaining team from Cherokee County in the state playoffs and will face a Rome program that won back-to-back state titles in 2016-17 and over the past five seasons has compiled a 58-9 record. River Ridge is coming off a 35-34 win over Kennesaw Mountain in which the Knights’ defense secured the win by stopping a 2-point conversion attempt by the Mustangs on the final play of the first overtime. The Knights were led defensively by Brian Bradley who finished with a team-high 19 tackles including six tackles-for-loss and one sack. Five other players for River Ridge recorded tackles-for-loss with including Aidan Bruton who finished with three. River Ridge running back Amehre Morrison finished with 164 yards and three touchdowns and now has 1,717 and 25 rushing touchdowns on the season. His 15-yard touchdown run on the first play of overtime helped regain the momentum in the Knights’ favor following the end of regulation. River Ridge’s offensive line features four seniors and their continuous improvement has allowed Morrison to flourish. Rome is coming off a 35-14 win over Habersham Central and features a balanced offense that has improved steadily as the season has progressed. Senior running back E.J. Lackey finished with 184 yards and three touchdowns last week and has been the focal point of the Wolves’ offense all season. The emergence of freshman quarterback Reece Fountain — who finished 14-for-17 with 206 yards and two touchdowns — continues to provide balance to Rome’s offense. Senior Jay Wise is the Wolves leading receiver but a duo of freshmen — Martavious Collins and DeKaylon Daniel — are both capable of changing a game as well. Rome scored two of its five touchdowns last week on single-play drives and has averaged 29 points per game during its current six-game winning streak. Rome’s three losses have come at the hands of three of the better teams in the state in Collins Hill, Cherokee and Carrolton. The Wolves’ defense is led by senior defensive back Jameion Leath, who leads the team in tackles, and senior defensive lineman Bryant Wilkinson, who leads the team in tackles-for-loss and sacks. The Knights continue to traverse uncharted waters while Rome is playing in the second round of the playoffs for the sixth-consecutive season. Rome had 19 new starters to begin the season and has a number of sophomores and freshmen in starting roles. Rome will likely be the favorite but River Ridge is riding the momentum of a historic season. &nbsp;