The Pickens Dragons are set to bounce back from a disappointing loss last week at the hands of the Northwest Whitfield Bruins, as this Friday, September 20, the team returns to Dragons Stadium to take on the Heritage Generals.This season’s matchup will be the fifth all-time between these schools, with the previous four matchups having been played since 2010. The Generals hold a 3-1 record against the Dragons, but Pickens had the last life in this series with their 45-0 victory in Ringgold last season.

The shutout pitched by the Dragons last year was not an anomaly, as the Generals struggled through the 2012 season and finished the year with a disheartening 0-10 record. Unfortunately, Heritage has continued to struggle through three games this season, shown by their being outscored 116-42 and by being seated in an uncomfortable 0-3 hole.

While the Dragons did struggle mightily at maintaining possession of the football last week, it appears that this game against the Generals may be just what the doctored ordered for a squad that was fully capable of remaining undefeated but unfortunately were unable to finish the drill. Although one can never really tell what will happen on any given Friday night, it appears that this matchup features teams that are definitely not of the same caliber as far as talent is concerned.

The key to this game for the Dragons will be to simply play smarter on offense. Although this team truly has a tremendous amount of talent, last week’s loss was directly linked to forcing plays that simply were not there as well as poor execution of the fundamentals. Upsets are quite common in football, but the Dragons will really have to piddle around offensively in order for the Generals to have a fighting chance in this matchup.

Prediction: Pickens comes out of the gates looking to fire up the camouflage-clad crowd and do so successfully, as the Dragons’ first possession of the game ends with a 54 yard touchdown run by Shannon Brooks. While the Generals do their part to try and contend, the ballgame is essentially all downhill from there for the Dragons, as they roll on to a 2-1 record in their second blowout victory of the season. Final Score Heritage Generals 7, Pickens Dragons 53