Football Preview: Ocala Christian Crusaders vs. Real Life Christian Academy Raptors
Ocala Christian has been away from home for four games now, but on Saturday they'll finally make their return. They will welcome the Real Life Christian Academy Raptors at 6:00 p.m. The two teams have allowed few points on average, (Ocala Christian: 8.2, Real Life Christian Academy: 10.5) so any points scored will be well earned.
Ocala Christian is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Florida's top teams: Calvary Chapel Academy, who was ranked 17th in their home state at the time (Ocala Christian was ranked third). Ocala Christian never let Calvary Chapel Academy onto the board and left with a 2-0 win on Friday. The two-point effort marked the Crusaders' lowest-scoring game of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Meanwhile, Real Life Christian Academy entered their tilt with Eastland Christian on Friday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They breezed by the Hurricanes at home to the tune of 62-6. The Raptors' offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
Real Life Christian Academy relied on the efforts of Johnny Olsen, who rushed for 91 yards and two touchdowns on only ten carries, and Caleb Burden, who threw for 55 yards and two touchdowns.
Real Life Christian Academy's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged five passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Noah Durkee and Elijah Hagan. With that strong performance, Durkee is now averaging an impressive 1.5 interceptions per game. Real Life Christian Academy got some further help from Hunter Anderson: he picked up two sacks and made six total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Real Life Christian Academy was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 212 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 161 rushing yards in eight consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Ocala Christian's victory was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 5-0. As for Real Life Christian Academy, their win bumped their record up to 3-1.
Everything came up roses for Ocala Christian against Real Life Christian Academy in their previous meeting back in November of 2022, as the squad secured a 44-7 victory. Will Ocala Christian repeat their success, or does Real Life Christian Academy have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
