For the first time this season, Marquez will have a chance to prove themselves in a conference matchup. They will welcome the Santee Falcons at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Marquez is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 55 points last Friday, they were much more limited against Eagle Rock on Friday. They lost 34-10 to the Eagles. The matchup marked the Gladiators' lowest-scoring contest so far this season.
Despite the defeat, Marquez got top-tier performance from Marcus Juan, who rushed for 98 yards and one TD. Jonathan Ramirez also helped out with an impressive 82 receiving yards.
Meanwhile, while Santee put up plenty of points last Friday, the same can't be said for West Adams. The Falcons simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Panthers 49-0. The Falcons haven't had any issues with the Panthers recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive victory against them.
Santee found their leader in freshman Keitran Lattimore, who rushed for 87 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Lattimore also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, picking up a sack and making six total tackles (3.0 for loss).
One reason for the win was Santee's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for five sacks. Leading the way was Aarnav Shrivastava with two.
Marquez's loss dropped their record down to 4-2. As for Santee, their win bumped their record up to 4-1.
Friday's game might be decided on the ground. Marquez has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 218.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Santee struggles in that department as they've been averaging 303.6 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's contest turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Marquez was able to grind out a solid victory over Santee in their previous matchup back in October of 2024, winning 33-21. Do the Gladiators have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Falcons turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
