Preview: Rolesville Rams vs. Cardinal Gibbons Crusaders
Rolesville is on a nine-game streak of home wins (dating back to last season), while Cardinal Gibbons is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Rolesville Rams will take on the Cardinal Gibbons Crusaders at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Rolesville has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 656 points over their last 12 contests.
With a playoff game on the line, Rolesville rose to the challenge on Friday. They claimed a resounding 69-21 win over the Bengals at home. Considering Rolesville has won 11 games by more than 19 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Rolesville's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Devon Thomas, who rushed for 195 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 12.2 yards per carry. Thomas has been hot recently, having posted 100 or more rushing yards the last five times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Braden Atkinson, who threw for 292 yards and five touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Gibbons faced Clayton in a battle between two of the state's top teams. Cardinal Gibbons came out on top in a nail-biter against Clayton on Friday and snuck past 30-28.
Cardinal Gibbons' win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Gannon Jones, who threw for 190 yards and three touchdowns on only 12 passes. Jones hasn't dropped below three passing touchdowns for five straight games. Another player making a difference was Aiden Smalls, who picked up 73 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Their wins bumped Rolesville to 12-1 and Fuquay - Varina to 6-7.
We should be in store for an exciting game Friday as Rolesville and Cardinal Gibbons have no problem gaining yardage. Rolesville has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 529.1 total yards per game. However, it's not like Cardinal Gibbons struggles in that department as they've been averaging 401.2 per game. With a pair of commanding offenses duking it out, the defenses are going to have their work cut out for them.
Everything went Rolesville's way against Cardinal Gibbons in their previous matchup back in September as Rolesville made off with a 52-32 victory. Will Rolesville repeat their success, or does Cardinal Gibbons have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
