Hamilton, which has lost four of its last five, is 2-6 overall and 2-4 in the Greater Miami Conference heading into Friday’s home game against a Princeton team going the other direction.
The Vikings have won three of their last five games to crawl to 3-5, 3-3.
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“Princeton is a good football team,” Murphy said. “They fly around the ball on defense, they have some great, experienced athletes on the offensive side, and they understand the great history of the program.”
Both teams are idling in the lower half of the GMC in offense and defense.
Hamilton will take the sixth-ranked offense (291.5 yards per game) against Princeton’s sixth-ranked defense (302,4) while Big Blue’s defense (eighth, 356.4) will try to neutralize the Vikings’ No. 7 offense (285.5).
HHS did get some good news with the return of standout running back Maleek Jarrett (145 carries, 748 yards), who missed half the Sycamore game and the entire Lakota East contest with an ankle injury.
“Offensively, he is the one we hang our hat on,” Murphy said. “But the good side to not having him was that we had some other guys really take advantage and step up and play hard.”
Quarterback Khaliyal Sowell has proven to be a dual threat for Hamilton, throwing for 479 yards on 46 of 98 passing. Sowell has also added 564 yards on 96 carries.
The strides of the offense look more impressive when viewing the lineup and seeing six sophomores and a freshman on the field.
“We’ve just got to be consistent on offense,” Murphy said. “Our youth has led to some inconsistent play. We find enough ways to beat ourselves. We have turnovers or silly penalties at the wrong time and just haven’t played well enough to win some of those games.
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“There are teams in Week 9 fighting for the playoffs, and when you aren’t, it makes it hard. But I can see this group still wants to win. The seniors want to go out winners and the underclassmen want to set the right tone for the rest of their path here.”
Princeton is led by quarterback Hosea Hairston and back Tyrese Sherman.
Hairston has thrown for 419 yards and three scores in completing 50 percent of his passes, while Sherman has rushed 79 times for 508 yards.
Friday’s game
What: Princeton (3-5, 3-3 GMC) at Hamilton (2-6, 2-4 GMC), 7 p.m.
Where: Virgil Schwarm Stadium, 1165 Eaton Ave., Hamilton
Last year: Hamilton won 21-14
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