Football Preview: West Branch Warriors vs. Minerva Lions
West Branch has gone 9-1 against Minerva recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Friday. The West Branch Warriors will be playing in front of their home fans against the Minerva Lions at 7:00 p.m. The timing is sure in West Branch's favor as the team sits on ten straight wins at home (dating back to last season) while Minerva has been banged up by seven consecutive losses on the road also dating back to last season.
Last Friday, West Branch took their matchup on the road with ease, bagging a 48-13 victory over Howland. Considering the Warriors have won four contests by more than 19 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Jeremiah Thomas was his usual excellent self, rushing for 243 yards and a touchdown on only 14 carries, while also throwing for 205 yards and five touchdowns. He really tore up the turf during one magnificent 70-yard run. Anthony Perry was Thomas' top target, picking up 147 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, West Branch was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 329 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 194 rushing yards in four consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Minerva can finally bid farewell to their 14-game losing streak dating back to last season thanks to their game on Friday. They came out on top against Aquinas by a score of 16-7. The Lions' offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
West Branch's win bumped their record up to 5-0. As for Minerva, their victory (their first of the season) made their record 1-4.
Everything came up roses for West Branch against Minerva in their previous meeting back in September of 2023, as the squad secured a 70-0 win. Will West Branch repeat their success, or does Minerva have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
