Football Preview: Rio Rancho Rams vs. Centennial Hawks
The Rio Rancho Rams will head out on the road to challenge the Centennial Hawks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Rio Rancho is looking to tack on another W to their six-game streak on the road dating back to last season.
Rio Rancho is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: Las Cruces, who was ranked seventh in their home state at the time (Rio Rancho was ranked tenth). Rio Rancho took a 34-21 hit to the loss column at the hands of Las Cruces on Friday. The loss was the Rams' first of the season.
Meanwhile, Centennial put another one in the bag on Saturday to keep their perfect season alive. They really took it to Artesia for the full four quarters, racking up a 70-39 win at home.
Zaiden Davis was nothing short of spectacular: he rushed for 352 yards and six touchdowns while picking up 19.6 yards per carry. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 163.3 rushing yards per game. Another player making a difference was Rudy Rios, who rushed for 160 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 10.0 yards per carry.
Rios wasn't the only one working in the rushing yards department: Centennial was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 577 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 202 rushing yards in seven consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Centennial's defensive line made their presence known, laying out the QB three times. Leading the way was Joseph Bitar and his two sacks.
Rio Rancho's loss dropped their record down to 2-1. As for Centennial, their record is now 3-0.
Rio Rancho was taken down by Centennial 41-14 in their previous meeting back in November of 2022. Can Rio Rancho avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
