Football Game Preview: Vega Longhorns vs. Stratford Elks

Vega is 1-7 against Stratford since October of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Longhorns will square off against the Elks at 7:00 p.m. Vega has given up an average of 26.6 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

On Friday, Vega took a blow against Gruver, falling 49-6.

Meanwhile, you can't lose the game if you win every quarter, and that was precisely Stratford's strategy against Bovina on Friday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that the Elks blew the Mustangs out of the water with a 56-12 final score. With the Elks ahead 36-0 at the half, the game was all but over already.

Vega better keep an eye on Chase Lantelme. He was instrumental in Stratford's win, throwing for 126 yards and three TDs on only 11 passes, while also punching in one score on the ground. Lantelme's passing game has become a key predictor of the Elks' success: the team is undefeated when his passer rating is 110 or higher, but only 1-2 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Darius Jones, who gained 70 total yards and two touchdowns.

Stratford didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Jackson Carroll, Alex Romero, and Hudson Holland picked up one apiece.

Stratford is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-2 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 42.8 points over those games. As for Vega, their loss dropped their record down to 3-5.

Vega was taken down by Stratford 47-0 in their previous meeting back in November of 2024. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Lantelme, who threw for 182 yards and four touchdowns on perfect 6-for-6 passing. Now that the Longhorns know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.