Football Preview: Florence Gophers vs. Coolidge Bears
The Florence Gophers will venture away from home to face off against the Coolidge Bears at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Florence has five straight wins, Coolidge has four straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Florence's defense heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They blew past Rio Rico 43-0 at home. That 43 point margin sets a new team best for the Gophers this season.
Logan Stenson continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 94 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries, while also throwing for 138 yards and a touchdown on only 13 passes. His longest rush was for an impressive 68 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. Another player making a difference was Malik Smith, who rushed for 93 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Florence was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 347 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in September of 2023.
Florence's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged six passes before it was all said and done. Kj Watts led the group effort, picking up three of those interceptions all by himself.
Meanwhile, Coolidge fell victim to Combs and their airtight defense two weeks ago. They were dealt a 57-0 loss at the hands of the Coyotes. That makes it the first time this season the Bears have let down their home crowd.
Florence pushed their record up to 5-0 with the victory, which was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Coolidge, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-4.
Florence strolled past Coolidge when the teams last played back in September of 2023 by a score of 30-12. The rematch might be a little tougher for Florence since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
