Football Preview: Troy Warriors vs. Segerstrom Jaguars
After each having a week off, the Troy Warriors and the Segerstrom Jaguars will shake off the cobwebs and square off against one another at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Troy knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past four matches -- so hopefully Segerstrom likes a good challenge.
Segerstrom is facing Troy at the wrong time: Troy suffered their first home loss of the season two weeks ago and they're likely out for redemption. They were just a hair shy of victory and fell 42-41 to the Knights. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game on September 6th (33), the Warriors still had to take the loss.
Troy might have lost, but man, Ethan Mundt was a machine: he rushed for 165 yards and a touchdown while picking up 8.3 yards per carry, and also picked up 35 receiving yards. Mundt's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his eighth straight game with at least 110 rushing yards dating back to last season. Caleb Huss was another key player, gaining 127 total yards and two touchdowns.
Even though they lost, Troy was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 248 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 157 rushing yards in nine consecutive games dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Segerstrom has relied on a stalwart defense averaging 14 points allowed per game, but that average took a hit two weeks ago. They lost 49-24 to El Modena. The Jaguars haven't had much luck with the Vanguards recently, as the team's come up short the last three times they've met.
Defeat or not, Segerstrom got some senior leadership from Jesse Lopez and Nicholas Cervantes. Lopez threw for 224 yards and a touchdown while picking up 11.2 yards per attempt, while Cervantes picked up 155 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Having lost for the first time this season, Troy fell to 3-1. As for Segerstrom, their loss was their first of the season and also makes their record 3-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Troy has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 250 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Segerstrom struggles in that department as they've been averaging 208.2. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Troy strolled past Segerstrom in their previous matchup back in September of 2023 by a score of 39-25. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Segerstrom's Ayden Morales, who rushed for 59 yards and two touchdowns, and also picked up 73 receiving yards and a touchdown. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Troy still be able to contain Morales? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
