One local side will be looking to bolster its playoff profile while the other will simply be looking to get on track when Claxton travels to Portal Friday evening for a Region 3A-A showdown.

Portal has struggled throughout the season, dropping each of its first five games and struggling to get anything going in terms of creating an offense.

The opposite has been true for a Claxton squad that is quickly on the rise.

Tony Welch took the helm for the Tigers at the beginning of the 2017 season and inherited a team that was struggling to remain relevant from year to year.

Claxton remained an also-ran over the last two seasons, but has emerged as an offensive force that is making its mark in the Class A power rankings that will ultimately determine the state playoff bracket.

Portal's biggest concern remains its offense - or lack therof.

The Panthers have notched just five touchdowns all season and haven't put a single point on the scoreboard since the middle of September. 

Region 3-A has long been a tough stretch of playing for the small public schools stuck in a region that is packed with private schools that have routinely recruited and improved to the effect of dominating much of the action on the football field, but Claxton is showing signs of fighting back.

The Tigers have a long way to go before they will be considered as any sort of power in the state, but Claxton will bring a young and very talented squad to Portal Friday night and has every reason to think that it can notch out a solid seeding in the Class A public school playoff.

Claxton quarterback Hayden Morris has racked up six touchdowns to just one interception so far this season while Sirmarcus Birney and Karon Taylor have each eclipsed over 300 rushing yards.

Meanwhile, the Panther offense has struggled to get anything going and have repeatedly relied on a defense that might not be up to mitigating the firepower that Claxton is about to bring to town.

Friday's matchup will play a crucial roll in Claxton's postseason efforts as the region matchups aren't considered when calculatiing the final state rankings via the state-wide power poll.

Wins and losses are considered, but the quality of opponents and the records of those opponents also play into the fold.

Portal is — more or less — out of the postseason conversation already, but Claxton is very much in the conversation with a month still to play. Meanwhile, Claxton has fought its way right into the thick of things and needs another win on Friday to continue to build its resuma as a contender in Class A.