MEADVILLE — One week after coming back from a 19-point deficit to beat Class 5A Natchez High, the Franklin County Bulldogs jump back into region play to face an opponent just as tough or tougher.

Franklin County will host perennial power Tylertown in a battle for first place in Region 7-3A.

“Our schedule doesn’t get any easier,” Franklin County coach Trent Hammond said. “(Tylertown) is a real good football team. They have a lot of speed and are extremely well coached.”

Hammond said one of the keys to a Franklin County victory will be for the Bulldogs to play a full four quarters, unlike against Natchez when Hammond said his team only played well in the second half.

“One of the things we talked all day about was playing a full game,” Hammond said. “We’ve got to be able to play a good, full football game in order to beat a good team such as Tylertown.”

Franklin County quarterback Jamie Collins only completed two passes for 10 yards against Natchez, but ran for 98 yards and three touchdowns, which Hammond said is exactly what he wants to see.

“We didn’t want to throw the ball against Natchez,” Hammond said. “We come into a game believing we can run the football. We’ll throw the ball when we have to but we prefer to run the football. We’ve got some good players who can run the football.”

Franklin County won’t be the only team that runs the ball well on the field Friday night. Tylertown wants to run the ball as well, but in a different way.

While Franklin County runs most every play out of the shotgun, the Chiefs operate out of a wing-T formation.

“They’re extremely fast,” Hammond said of Tylertown. “We have got to stay at home and play well disciplined football in order to stop them.”

Tylertowns brings a 2-1 record into the contest with wins over East Marion and North Pike and a loss to Canton.

Tylertown is only one of the great teams in Franklin County’s region. State power South Pike, Charleston and an up-and-coming Jefferson County team are also in Region 7-3A.

Hammond said the tough opponents the Bulldogs face week in and week out will prepare them for the state playoffs.

“If we can stay healthy throughout the season, (playing in a tough region) should help us,” Hammond said. “There are no easy weeks. We have to play and bow up. It will be a benefit to us.”