Rowe hasn't had much luck against McAllen Memorial recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Warriors will take on the Mustangs at 7:30 p.m. The two teams might be coming in a bit winded given these two teams combined for 830 yards in their previous games.
On Friday, Rowe was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 36-30 to Mission.
Despite the loss, Rowe got top-tier performance from Alexander Lopez Negrete, who rushed for 190 yards and a pair of touchdowns on only 13 carries. Lopez Negrete's longest rush was for an incredible 75 yards. Eli Garza was another key player, throwing for 115 yards and one TD.
Meanwhile, McAllen Memorial came tearing into Thursday's matchup with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 26.5 points), and they left with even more momentum. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 31-28 win over the Sabercats. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Mustangs have posted since October 11, 2024.
Rowe better keep an eye on Jayden Soliz. He was instrumental in McAllen Memorial's win, rushing for 205 yards and a pair of scores while picking up 12.8 yards per carry. Those 205 rushing yards gave Soliz a new career-high. McAllen Memorial also got a significant boost from Braxton Speights, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 81 yards.
McAllen Memorial's run defense was locked in: Vela could only muster 2.7 yards per carry. The team can thank Dalton Keller for the heroic effort on defense: he. McAllen Memorial didn't have any issues in that department, having averaged 8.7.
Rowe's defeat dropped their record down to 4-4. As for McAllen Memorial, their win bumped their record up to 6-2.
| Rushing Yards | 495 |
| Rushing Touchdowns | 6 |
Friday's contest will pit two of the most dominant backs against one another: Lopez Negrete and Speights. Lopez Negrete just won't slow down this season and has run in 6 touchdowns while averaging 82.5 rushing yards per game. Speights has been a dominant force too and has run in 11 touchdowns while averaging 166.6 rushing yards per game.
Rowe lost to McAllen Memorial on the road by a decisive 42-28 margin in their previous matchup back in November of 2024. Can the Warriors avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
