Even though Island Coast’s romp to a glossy 5-1 record, including four straight wins, arguably might have come against weaker opponents does not mean the Cape Coral Seahawks are taking the Gators lightly.

“It’s a huge challenge for us,” said Seahawks coach Brad Metheny. “They have been good on both sides of the ball, five shutouts in six games, with an outstanding runningback. Obviously they have the offensive personnel to put up points.”

The Gators (5-1, 2-0 district) meet the Seahawks (5-0, 1-0) in a city rivalry, but nondistrict game, Friday night at Cape’s Dave Warkentin Field. Disregard the records and the opponents disposed of along the way, the intent of these two teams is on winning.

The Seahawks still are battling the injury bug, but so far have been able to get the job done.

“We have not had our starting defense on the field since the first week,” said Metheny. “We have to continue to lean on those guys (filling in) to still contribute.”

The Seahawks have had success coming from behind on occasion, but the Gators have shown an ability to rack up a lot of points quickly.

“They have scored points so fast, 40-0 or 50-0 by the half,” said Metheny. “They are successful at what they are doing and they find a way to get it done. We will try some things on offense and defense to stop their running game.”

The Gators run, run, run and rarely throw a pass. In fact, in six games they have completed just 7 of 34 passes for 182 yards and one TD.

Junior speedster Delmarick (Mario) Pender is the ground game’s workhorse. He has amassed 1,368 yards on 62 carries (22.1 per carry) and 21 TDs, many of them on long runs of 40 yards or more. He had just one game in which he scored fewer than three times. In the last four games, Pender put up 17 TDs with a season-high five against Ida Baker. No other player has more than quarterback Nelson Candelario’s 261 yards rushing and none more than three total TDs.

Decidedly one-dimensional, but the Gators somehow make it work.

None of the Gators’ six opponents so far have a winning record and are a combined 8-27. North Fort Myers tops that list with the most wins at 3-3.

The Seahawks hope to counter by keeping the Gators off guard and combat the dominance of their dominant front four.

“We have to establish the running game,” said Metheny. “We must find a balance, somewhere, somehow. We’ve gotten better at running the football and producing results.”

Seahawks quarterback Bryan Greenwell has done a good job of involving all of his receivers in the passing game.

“Bryan has done what we have asked of him as a senior leader,” said Metheny. “He has done a good job of distributing the ball and made good reads and good decisions. He has only five games as a starter under his belt, so we still want him to get better at it.”

Greenwell’s arm could be the deciding factor in the Seahawks coming out of Friday’s game with their undefeated record intact.

South Fort Myers Wolfpack (5-0, 2-0) at Ida Baker Bulldogs (0-6, 0-1): A disappointing season doesn’t get any easier for the Bulldogs this week, except that Friday’s game with the Wolfpack does not count against their district record.

The Bulldogs, who have yet to put more than 14 points on the board in four of their six games (with two shutouts), have struggled offensively and defensively. They have been outscored 189-48 and must find a way to get into the end zone in their remaining games if they are to avoid a dreaded winless season.

North Port Bobcats (2-3) at North Fort Myers Red Knights (3-3, 1-1): The Red Knights get a one-week rest from district competition with Friday’s opponent at Moody Field before heading onto their final three-game push against district rivals.

The Red Knights are coming off a shutout loss to South Fort Myers that handed them their first district defeat. The Knights, who are third in the district standings behind unbeaten South and Riverdale, have their fate in their own hands.

After district games with Mariner and Bishop Verot, the Red Knights host Riverdale in the season finale. With games remaining with South and Bishop Verot in the coming weeks, Riverdale’s visit to Moody Field could determine the district runner-up.

In common opponents so far, the Red Knights need only to look to the Ida Baker Bulldogs for inspiration. The Knights beat Baker 13-0 while North Port earned a 34-14 victory.

Mariner (1-5, 0-2) and Bishop Verot (5-1, 1-1) both have bye weeks before engaging district rivals next week.

In other area district contests Friday night: Cypress Lake (1-4, 0-2) hosts Golden Gate (4-2, 0-2); Lehigh (5-1, 2-1) entertains East Lee County (2-3, 1-2); Evangelical Christian (4-1, 2-0) collides with Southwest Florida Christian (1-3, 0-3); Lely (2-4, 1-2) hosts Naples (5-0, 2-0); and Immokalee (3-2, 1-0) entertains Palmetto Ridge (0-5, 0-1).

Nondistrict matchups send Dunbar (2-3, 2-0) to Riverdale (2-3, 2-0); Fort Myers (2-4, 0-2) entertains Estero (4-2, 1-0); Gateway Charter (0-5, 0-2) travels to Coral Springs Charter; St. John Neumann (2-4, 1-2) visits First Baptist Academy (2-3); Charlotte (6-0, 1-0) hosts Venice (4-1) and DeSoto County (2-3, 0-1) invades Port Charlotte (2-4, 0-1).