Football Game Preview: Garland Owls vs. Wylie East Raiders

Garland hasn't had much luck against Wylie East recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Owls will take on the Raiders at 7:00 p.m. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

On Thursday, Garland beat Lakeview Centennial 20-13. The win continues a trend for the Owls in their matchups with the Patriots: they've now won six in a row.

Meanwhile, on Thursday Wylie East's undefeated season almost came to an end. They had just enough and edged out Rowlett 16-14. Given the Raiders' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas football rankings (they are ranked 82nd, while the Eagles are ranked 333rd) , the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Wylie East's win came from a few key players Garland will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Jonathan Utubor, who rushed for 86 yards and one TD. Keveyon Thorne was another key player, having thrown for 292 yards and onetouchdown.

The victory got Garland back to even at 4-4. As for Wylie East, their win bumped their record up to 8-0.

Garland took a serious blow against Wylie East when the teams last played back in November of 2024, falling 66-10. Thankfully for the Owls, Howard Fisher IV (who rushed for 117 yards and one score on only 11 carries, and also threw for 196 yards and a pair of touchdowns on only 15 passes) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.