FERRIDAY — When Wilkinson County takes on Ferriday under the bright lights at Melz Field, a matchup of speed vs. power will be prevalent.

Not to say both sides don’t have both, but Ferriday head coach Dwight Woods and Wilkinson County head coach Kenneth Brown acknowledged the size vs. speed scenario.

“They’re still the same Ferriday,” Brown said. “They’re athletic, and they love to pressure you. We’ve been working with (quarterback) Desmond Hunter on his delivery. The plan is for him to get rid of the ball as fast as he can to avoid him getting hits by those big boys from Ferriday.”

And while Hunter looks to eliminate those hits from that Ferriday front four, Woods will look to limit the production of three of the best wide receivers in the Miss-Lou.

“That’s our biggest concern,” Woods said. “They’ve been putting up incredible numbers. Watching them on film, we know we have to do some different things and keep our personnel fresh.”

According to Max Preps, Hunter is second nationally in passing yards with 2,034 through five games. Juan Anthony leads the team with 624 receiving yards, while Travion Jones has 597 yards despite not playing last week against Scotlandville. Robert Swint also has 511 receiving yards, and Swint and Jones each have five touchdown receptions.

A shoulder injury kept Jones from playing in the 59-18 loss to Scotlandville, and Brown said he hasn’t determined if Jones will play against Ferriday.

“We’re not sure. I do know the outcome of the last game wouldn’t have changed with Travion in there, but it certainly would have been a lot more competitive,” Brown said.

Wilkinson County is (2-3) this season, with two of those losses coming against Louisiana High School Athletic Association 5A schools. Meanwhile, Ferriday is 3-0.

Woods said he expects Ronald Davis to suit up this Friday, despite not playing against Vidalia last Friday because of a concussion suffered against Block.

“He’s been cleared, but we don’t want to rush him back,” Woods said. “It’s homecoming, so he’s going to want to get out there. He’s a game changer, no doubt. We’ll call a few plays for him.”

Woods said he will try to frustrate Hunter with pressure on defense because Hunter is capable of tearing defenses a part if he sits in the pocket. And if his defense isn’t unsuccessful in slowing down Wilkinson County’s air attack, Woods is confident his rushing game and passing game can match point for point.

“Ronald (Williams) has been getting better at quarterback and the receivers have been getting better,” Woods said. “Malik (Hampton) has been running the ball effectively. If we were to get into that situation, I feel good about us scoring quickly, but we want to play defense and control the clock.”

Wilkinson County and Ferriday will kick off for Ferriday’s homecoming at 7 p.m.