Football Preview: Vernon Vikings vs. Sparta Spartans
On Friday Vernon will have to hit the road after three straight games at home. They will venture away from home to square off against the Sparta Spartans. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Vernon is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They claimed a resounding 42-7 victory over Jefferson Township at home. Given the Vikings' advantage in MaxPreps' New Jersey football rankings (they are ranked 126th, while the Falcons are ranked 260th), the result on Friday wasn't entirely unexpected.
Vernon's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Gavin Bruno led the charge by rushing for 40 yards and two touchdowns, while also picking up 31 receiving yards. Vernon also got a significant boost from Thomas Benson, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 85 yards.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Vernon was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 235 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Vernon's defense and their three sacks. In that department, Roman Drupka was the leader with two.
Meanwhile, Sparta had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 25 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They took their game on the road with ease, bagging a 39-7 win over the Braves.
Vernon's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 3-1. As for Sparta, their record now sits at 3-1.
Vernon strolled past Sparta in their previous matchup back in September of 2023 by a score of 21-7. Will Vernon repeat their success, or does Sparta have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
