Football Preview: Aquinas Fightin' Irish vs. Cross Creek Razorbacks
The Aquinas Fightin' Irish will square off against the Cross Creek Razorbacks at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. Aquinas knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past three matchups -- so hopefully Cross Creek likes a good challenge.
Aquinas is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They managed a 43-39 victory over Howard on Tuesday.
Aquinas got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Eli Hutchinson out in front who rushed for 144 yards and a touchdown while picking up 7.6 yards per carry, and also picked up 33 receiving yards and a touchdown. The dominant performance gave Hutchinson a new career-high in rushing yards. Jim Franklin was another key signal caller, throwing for 268 yards and two touchdowns.
Aquinas was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 218 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 182 rushing yards in three consecutive matches.
One reason for the win was Aquinas' imposing defensive line, which managed to get into the backfield for three sacks. Leading the way was Jaden Wuerth with two.
Meanwhile, Cross Creek was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their eighth straight loss. They fell just short of Hephzibah by a score of 28-26. Despite 101 more yards than the Rebels, the Razorbacks couldn't convert that extra yardage to scores.
Despite their defeat, Cross Creek saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Brandon Wallace, who threw for 180 yards and a touchdown, and also punched in a touchdown on the ground, was perhaps the best of all. Karmani Bell helped Wallace out on the ground, rushing for 63 yards and a touchdown on only eight carries.
Cross Creek's record now sits at 1-8. As for Aquinas, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
Everything came up roses for Aquinas against Cross Creek when the teams last played back in August of 2021, as the team secured a 43-0 victory. Will Aquinas repeat their success, or does Cross Creek have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
