Football Preview: Castleberry Lions vs. Alvarado Indians
Castleberry has won three straight games at home, while Alvarado has won three straight on the road dating back to last season, but those streaks won't matter much on Friday. The Castleberry Lions will welcome the Alvarado Indians at 7:30 p.m. Both might be coming in a bit winded given these two teams combined for 900 yards in their previous games.
Last Friday, Castleberry came up short against Lake Worth and fell 42-30. The Lions have struggled against the Bullfrogs recently, as the game was their third consecutive lost matchup.
The match pitted two dominant backs against one another in Isaiah Ford and Jaden Garrett. Garrett had a great game and gained 182 total yards and three touchdowns. Meanwhile, Ford did his best for the losing side, rushing for 93 yards and a touchdown.
Even though they lost, Castleberry was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 228 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 170 rushing yards in ten consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Alvarado). They blew past Life Waxahachie, posting a 79-13 victory. The Indians might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won seven matches by 21 points or more this season.
It was another big night for Cardea Collier, who threw for 352 yards and eight touchdowns while completing 89.5% of his passes, and also rushed for 60 yards and a touchdown. He is on a roll when it comes to passing touchdowns, as he's now passed for three or more in the last three games he's played. Lance Sansom was Collier's top target, picking up 181 receiving yards and five touchdowns.
Alvarado wouldn't let Life Waxahachie keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force three fumbles. It was truly a group effort as Ty Means, Leland Hopson, and Angel Cavazos picked up one apiece. D.J. Clampitt was another major factor on D, making nine total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Castleberry's loss dropped their record down to 4-4. As for Alvarado, their win bumped their record up to 8-0.
The upcoming contest will be a clash of competing strengths. Castleberry has deployed a run-first offense that has averaged 290.1 rushing yards a game. Meanwhile, Alvarado has preferred to attack from the air: they average 302.4 passing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Friday? There's only one way to find out.
Castleberry took a serious blow against Alvarado in their previous meeting back in October of 2015, falling 56-0. Will Castleberry have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other football content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
