Preview: North Crowley Panthers vs. Bell Blue Raiders
Two dominant signal callers in Chris Jimerson and Maddox Olatunde are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The North Crowley Panthers will head out on the road to face off against the Bell Blue Raiders at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. North Crowley will be coming into the match with an undefeated record on the line.
Last Friday, North Crowley humbled Weatherford with a 62-17 victory. Fans of North Crowley have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season ended as a blowout.
North Crowley got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Jimerson out in front who rushed for 158 yards and two touchdowns on only seven carries, and also threw for 180 yards and two touchdowns while completing 72.7% of his passes. Jimerson was no stranger to the big play, turning on the jets for a run that went for 58 yards. Another player making a difference was Cornelius Warren iii, who rushed for 162 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries.
Meanwhile, Bell had just enough and edged Boswell out 29-27 on Friday.
Bell relied on the efforts of Kenny Earskin, who rushed for 81 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries, and Olatunde, who rushed for 123 yards and a touchdown on only 13 carries. Olatunde is on a roll when it comes to rushing yards, as he's now rushed for 100 or more in the last three games he's played. Andrew Rosen did his part by putting the 'special' in special teams, booting in three field goals and three extra points.
North Crowley's victory was their fourth straight at home, bumping their overall record up to 7-0. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 61.5 points per game. As for Bell, their win on Friday bumped their record up to 5-2.
Friday's match might be decided on the ground as these two are both standouts in the run game. North Crowley has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 325.9 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Bell struggles in that department as they've been averaging 170.3 per game. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
North Crowley took their win against Bell in their previous meeting back in October of 2022 by a conclusive 33-7. The rematch might be a little tougher for North Crowley since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
