Football Game Preview: Preston Knights vs. University Hawks

The Preston Knights will square off against the University Hawks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Preston has given up an average of 46.1 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

Preston is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 34 points on October 3rd, they were much more limited against Bridgeport on Friday. They had to suffer through a 49-7 loss at the hands of the Indians. The defeat continues a trend for the Knights in their meetings with the Indians: they've now lost seven in a row.

Aidan Schmidl

Receiving Yards

10/17/25 vs Bridgeport	165
10/03/25 vs Woodrow Wilson	117
09/26/25 @ East Fairmont	249
09/19/25 vs Robert C. Byrd	83
09/11/25 @ Fairmont Senior	65
+ 2 more games

Loss or not, Preston got some senior leadership from Aidan Schmidl and Slaton Manko. Schmidl picked up 165 receiving yards and one TD, while Manko threw for 291 yards and one touchdown. With that strong performance, Schmidl is now averaging an impressive 108.7 receiving yards per game.

Meanwhile, University faced Spring Mills in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. The Hawks walked away with a 35-28 victory over the Cardinals. The score was all tied up 14-14 at the break, but the Hawks were the better team in the second half.

Preston better keep an eye on Harrison Helbig. He was instrumental in University's win, throwing for 360 yards and four TDs. Those 360 passing yards gave Helbig a new career-high. Kaleil Lewis was Helbig's top target, picking up 58 receiving yards and a pair of scores.

University's win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-2. As for Preston, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-6.

Preston couldn't quite get it done against University when the teams last played back in October of 2024 as they fell 42-35. Will the Knights have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more football content.