Football Game Preview: Birch Run Panthers vs. Durand Railroaders

The Birch Run Panthers are taking a road trip to challenge the Durand Railroaders at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.

Birch Run is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 49 points last Friday, they were much more limited against Ovid-Elsie on Friday. They had to suffer through a 42-7 loss at the hands of the Marauders. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Michigan football rankings (they are ranked 275th, while the Marauders are ranked 110th).

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Durand). They breezed past Mt. Morris to the tune of 54-22 on Friday. The Railroaders haven't had any issues with the Panthers recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive win against them.

Birch Run's loss dropped their record down to 3-3. As for Durand, their victory bumped their record up to 4-2.

Birch Run won a matchup that couldn't have been any closer in their previous matchup back in October of 2024, slipping by Durand 27-26. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Panthers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.