Football Preview: Elgin/Pope John Wolfpack vs. Ainsworth Bulldogs
Two dominant backs in Grady Drueke and Morgan Kinney are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Elgin/Pope John Wolfpack are taking a road trip to challenge the Ainsworth Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Last Friday, Elgin/Pope John didn't have too much breathing room in their match against Neligh-Oakdale, but they still walked away with a 36-32 win.
Drueke was his usual excellent self, rushing for 179 yards and two touchdowns. Those 179 rushing yards gave him a new career-high. Speaking of playmakers, who could forget Dylan Kolm, who went all the way with a kickoff return for a touchdown.
Elgin/Pope John didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Jarek Erickson and Drueke. Erickson also set a new season high mark in total tackles with 14.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Elgin/Pope John was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 287 rushing yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Neligh-Oakdale only rushed for 169.
Meanwhile, Ainsworth had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 28.7 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Friday. They blew past the Bulldogs 60-26 at home. Ainsworth might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three games by 34 points or more this season.
It was another big night for Kinney, who rushed for 151 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 8.4 yards per carry, and also threw for 132 yards and three touchdowns on only ten passes. He is on a roll when it comes to rushing touchdowns, as he's now punched in three or more in the last three games he's played dating back to last season. Chris Fernandez was another key player, rushing for 85 yards and a touchdown.
Another reason for the win was Ainsworth's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for five sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Jacob Held and Aiden Jackman, who racked up all five sacks between them.
Elgin/Pope John now has a winning record of 4-3. As for Ainsworth, they now also have a winning record of 4-3.
Thursday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Elgin/Pope John has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 236.9 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Ainsworth struggles in that department as they've been averaging 187.9. It's looking like Thursday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Elgin/Pope John was dealt a bruising 60-8 loss at the hands of Ainsworth in their previous meeting back in September of 2023. Thankfully for Elgin/Pope John, Carter Nelson (who rushed for 120 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 7.5 yards per carry, and also threw for 155 yards and a touchdown while completing 78.6% 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.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
