Football Game Preview: Russell Rustlers vs. Butte Bulldogs + How To Watch

The Russell Rustlers will be playing at home against the Butte Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.

Things were looking good for Russell after they put the first points on the board on Friday, but unfortunately for them things went downhill from there. They fell 16-3 to Great Falls. The Rustlers haven't had much luck with the Bison recently, as the team has come up short the last eight times they've met.

Meanwhile, Butte hadn't done well against Capital recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. The Bulldogs enjoyed a cozy 17-0 victory over the Bruins. The Bulldogs didn't have much to brag about two games back, but this win makes it their second in a row.

The critical scores for Butte came from Kodye Kjersten and Raeder Grey.

Butte was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 212 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since the start of last season.

Butte's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB seven times. Max Pearston was particularly dangerous to the passing game, picking up two sacks himself. Butte got some further help from Mitch Verlanic: he forced one fumble, made 12 total tackles, and defended two passes.

Russell's defeat dropped their record down to 5-4. As for Butte, they picked up their first home victory, bumping their record up to 3-6.

Russell was dealt a bruising 52-21 loss at the hands of Butte when the teams last played back in September of 2019. Thankfully for the Rustlers, Tommy Mellott (who rushed for 121 yards and three touchdowns on only seven carries, and also threw for 343 yards and three TDs while completing 72.7% of his passes) 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.