Football Preview: Bloomington South Panthers vs. Columbus North Bull Dogs
Bloomington South and Columbus North are an even 5-5 against one another since October of 2014, but not for long. The Bloomington South Panthers will be playing at home against the Columbus North Bull Dogs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.
Bloomington South is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They took their game on the road on Friday with ease, bagging a 41-0 win over Southport. The contest was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Panthers had established a 20 point advantage.
It was another big night for Braylen Townsend, who rushed for 148 yards and two touchdowns. He has become a key player for Bloomington South: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns, but 1-2 otherwise. Quincy Brahaum was in the mix too, providing Bloomington South with a touchdown.
Bloomington South's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Brahaum and Ben Godar. Godar is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made seven or more in the last four games he's played dating back to last season. Bloomington South got some further help from Elijah Whitney: he made 14 total tackles (1.0 for loss).
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Bloomington South was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 202 rushing yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Southport only rushed for 66.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Columbus North, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They really took it to Terre Haute North Vigo for the full four quarters, racking up a 51-10 victory at home. Considering the Bull Dogs have won four matchups by more than 25 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Gino Prescott was his usual excellent self, rushing for 188 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 9.9 yards per carry, and also picking up 31 receiving yards and a touchdown. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rushing yards. Another player making a difference was Jordan Briner, who picked up 56 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Another reason for the win was Columbus North's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for seven sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Luke Russell and Evan Saevre, who racked up five sacks between them. Another thorn in Terre Haute North Vigo's side was Cole Finney, who picked up a sack and made ten total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Bloomington South has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matches, which provided a nice bump to their 4-2 record this season. As for Columbus North, their win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-1.
Friday's game might be decided in the on the ground. Bloomington South has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 182.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Columbus North struggles in that department as they've been averaging 198.3. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Bloomington South against Columbus North in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, as the team secured a 49-14 victory. In that matchup, Bloomington South amassed a halftime lead of 42-7, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
