Football Preview: Booker T. Washington Tornadoes vs. Lakeland Dreadnaughts
The Booker T. Washington Tornadoes will head out on the road to face off against the Lakeland Dreadnaughts at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.
Booker T. Washington took a loss when they played away from home last Saturday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They enjoyed a cozy 35-20 win over Immaculata-La Salle. Given the Tornadoes' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida football rankings (they are ranked 39th, while the Royal Lions are ranked 135th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Booker T. Washington's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Irwin James led the charge by rushing for 151 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.9 yards per carry, and also picking up 30 receiving yards. James really tore up the turf during one magnificent 75-yard run. Anton Smith was in the mix too, providing Booker T. Washington with two touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Booker T. Washington was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 237 rushing yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Immaculata-La Salle only rushed for 78.
Meanwhile, Lakeland put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Winter Haven 44-0 on the road. The score at the end of the third wound up being the final score as the Dreadnaughts just coasted through the last quarter.
Jadarius Dobie was a one-man wrecking crew for Lakeland as he rushed for 80 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries. That's the most rushing yards Dobie has posted since back in November of 2023. The team also got some help courtesy of Chad Williams, who threw for 105 yards and two touchdowns on only ten passes.
Booker T. Washington's victory was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 2-1. As for Lakeland, their record now sits at 3-0.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
