Football Preview: Bagdad Sultans vs. Desert Heights Prep Yote
Bagdad is 4-0 against Desert Heights Prep since October of 2020, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Bagdad Sultans will head out to square off against the Desert Heights Prep Yote at 7:00 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Bagdad is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Arizona's top teams: Williams, who was ranked 14th in their home state at the time (Bagdad was ranked third). Bagdad blew past Williams 50-0 at home on Friday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest win the Sultans have posted against the Vikings since November 12, 2016.
A big part of the victory came down to the chemistry between Ezrah Aguilar and his top target Thomas Rodriguez. Aguilar threw for 221 yards and three touchdowns on only 19 passes while Rodriguez rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns. Rodriguez got the majority of those rushing yards when he took off on a run that went for an incredible 56 yards. Zac Escobedo was in the mix as well, providing Bagdad with two touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Bagdad was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 243 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 191 rushing yards in five consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Desert Heights Prep). They strolled past Salome with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 49-32. The team's explosion on offense also rewarded the Yote with their most commanding win of the season.
Bagdad pushed their record up to 2-1 with that win, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Desert Heights Prep, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 3-1.
Everything came up roses for Bagdad against Desert Heights Prep in their previous matchup back in September of 2023 as the squad secured an 80-28 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Bagdad since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
