Football Preview: San Joaquin Memorial Panthers vs. Bullard Knights
After two games on the road, San Joaquin Memorial is heading back home. They will welcome the Bullard Knights at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
San Joaquin Memorial will head into Friday's game hoping to keep the good times rolling: they proved they can win big last Friday (they won by 34) but on Friday they proved they can win the close ones too. They narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past Madera 25-23.
San Joaquin Memorial found their leader in underclassman Colton Johnson, who threw for 246 yards and three touchdowns on only 17 passes. John Paul Hernandez was Johnson's top target, picking up 56 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Bullard humbled Justin Garza with a 44-13 victory. The result was nothing new for the Knights, who have now won four matches by 31 points or more so far this season.
Bullard relied on the efforts of Tyler Franklin, who threw for 232 yards and a touchdown while completing 85.7% of his passes, and Devon Laney, who rushed for 78 yards and two touchdowns on only 11 carries. Laney is becoming a predictor of Bullard's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is undefeated (and 0-3 when he doesn't).
Bullard wouldn't let Justin Garza keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Bullard can thank Malikai Harrah and Fernando Avila Iii for forcing both of them.
Special teams also deserves some recognition, posting 14 points in total. All came courtesy of Preston Clarke: he went 3-for-3 kicking field goals for nine points, and 5-for-5 kicking extra points for an additional five.
San Joaquin Memorial's victory bumped their record up to 6-2. As for Bullard, they pushed their record up to 5-3 with the win, which was their third straight at home.
San Joaquin Memorial beat Bullard 26-14 in their previous matchup back in October of 2023. Does San Joaquin Memorial have another victory up their sleeve, or will Bullard turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
