After each having a week off, the Del Oro Golden Eagles and the Rocklin Thunder will shake off the cobwebs and hit the field against one another at 7:00 p.m. on the 14th. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Del Oro has three straight wins, Rocklin has three straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Del Oro had to skate by with only a one-point margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the 38-point drubbing they dealt Davis Sr. on Friday. The Golden Eagles blew past the Blue Devils, posting a 44-6 victory. Considering the Golden Eagles have won five matchups by more than 24 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Brock Sherman continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 98 yards and one touchdown. The bulk of those rushing yards came from one huge play: a run that gained an incredible 73 yards. Grayson Smith got in on the action as well, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Del Oro proved: they limited Davis Sr. to a paltry 3.5 yards per carry. The team can thank Kade Dunn for the heroic effort on defense: he. Del Oro's run defense has been on the up-and-up: they allowed 4.89 yards per carry earlier this season, but they've only allowed 6.57 on average over their last five games.
Del Oro didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off four passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Silas Conner, Max Marek, Landen Parry, and Smith picked up one apiece. Conner got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Rocklin came up short against Oak Ridge on Friday, falling 34-14.
Del Oro will have to contain Greyson Smith as he made an impact in Rocklin's last game. He picked up 73 receiving yards and a pair of scores.
Del Oro's win bumped their record up to 7-3. As for Rocklin, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-5.
Del Oro barely slipped by Rocklin when the teams last played two weeks ago, winning 15-14. Will the Golden Eagles repeat their success, or do the Thunder have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
