Football Preview: Austin Panthers vs. Riverside Rangers
The Austin Panthers will face off against the Riverside Rangers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Austin sitting on five straight wins and Riverside on seven.
Last Friday, Austin strolled past Irvin with points to spare, taking the game 31-14.
This one was won in the trenches and the lion's share of the credit has to go to Oscar Flores and he. Flores rushed for 201 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 10.6 yards per carry while he rushed for 201 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 10.6 yards per carry. Those 201 rushing yards gave him a new career-high.
Austin was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 456 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 166 rushing yards in seven consecutive games.
Austin didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Anakin Torres, Andruw Andujo, and Joel Castaneda picked up one apiece.
Meanwhile, Riverside was fully in charge on Friday, breezing past Mountain View 48-7 at home. Considering the Rangers have won five matches by more than 21 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Riverside found their leader in underclassman Carlos Rojas Iii, who rushed for 99 yards and two touchdowns on only 12 carries, and also threw for 190 yards and four touchdowns while completing 71.4% of his passes. Rojas Iii also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, picking up a sack, forcing a fumble, and making four total tackles. Ricardo Briones was Rojas Iii's top target, picking up 55 receiving yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 48 yards and a touchdown.
Riverside wouldn't let Mountain View keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force three fumbles. It was truly a group effort as Rojas Iii, Izzy Garcia, and Christopher Avila picked up one apiece.
Austin pushed their record up to 6-1 with the victory, which was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Riverside, their win bumped their record up to 7-0.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Austin has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 314.7 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Riverside struggles in that department as they've been averaging 271.1. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Austin came up short against Riverside in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, falling 29-20. Thankfully for Austin, Derek Vasquez (who threw for 165 yards and two touchdowns while completing 71.4% of his passes, and also rushed for 50 yards and a touchdown) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
