Fayette — The first two weeks of Region 7-3A play created a log jam of 1-1 teams tied for second place in the standings, and Week 3 will provide a chance for Jefferson County and Wilkinson County to separate themselves from the pack.

The Tigers and the Wildcats faced each other last week with Wilkinson County coming out on top 28-14.

Today Jefferson County (2-6, 1-1) will look to rebound when it hosts Prentiss, while Wilkinson County (4-3, 1-1) hopes to string two wins together when it hosts region-leader Hazlehurst.

Tigers’ head coach James Herrington said his team is still in decent position to make a move this season.

“Looking at the standings and looking at how everybody has played this year, no one has really separated themselves,” he said. “There is opportunity for everybody to make a run at the end of the season.”

Herrington said his goal now is to keep his team focused on its goals.

“We are just trying to make sure we confirm and let the guys know that at the beginning of the season we set a goal to win Region 7-3A and even with all the close games we’ve lost this year, we still have the opportunity to accomplish those goals.”

Prentiss’ team speed will challenge Jefferson County tonight, Herrington said.

“They are a pretty speedy team,” he said. “They have good speed at the running back and quarterback position, and they are a pretty fast team overall.”

Herrington said his team has made mistakes in its losses this season that have really hurt.

“Turnovers and penalties always play a part in winning and losing,” he said. “The team that makes the most mistakes loses, and that was one thing that happened to us last week. We are not capitalizing, and penalties and turnovers have kept us in long situations.”

Herrington said Friday’s game is a huge one for his team.

“It would be big because it would not only push us one step closer to accomplishing our ultimate goal but also go a long way toward locking up a spot in the playoffs. Two wins normally gets you in, and if we can lock ourselves in the four-spot, then we can play for the top spot from there.”

Jefferson County and Prentiss (1-7, 0-2) will kick off at 7 p.m. in Fayette.

Hazlehurst at Wilkinson County

The Wildcats will also be looking to get over .500 in Region 7-3A today when they host Hazlehurst, the only undefeated team left in the region.

Wilkinson County head coach Kenneth Brown said the win last week helped his team’s confidence.

“It was real big considering where we were,” he said. “We feel like we let the first (region game) slip away. We feel like we played well enough to win the game.”

Brown said Hazlehurst would look to create chaos tonight, especially with the defensive line.

“They are aggressive up front,” he said. “They are real aggressive in terms of defenses, and they get off the ball real well.

“The main key will be for our line to be able to maintain the pressure coming from them.”

Brown said it is important for his team to know the opportunities that lay in front of it.

“This game is very important,” he said. “We’ve been stressing all week that we hold our destiny in our own hands at this point. If we play up to our capabilities we can do things we need to do to put ourselves in position where we don’t have to worry about getting help from someone else.

“We’ve been beating ourselves since the season started, but we have a young group that is playing hard and not giving up, so we feel like we have as good a chance as anybody in the district.”

Wilkinson County hosts Hazlehurst (6-1, 2-0) with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. today.