Football Game Preview: Mountainside Mavericks vs. Willamette Wolverines

The Mountainside Mavericks will take on the Willamette Wolverines on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

Mountainside's defense heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Beaverton 48-0. The matchup marked the Mavericks' most dominant victory of the season.

Meanwhile, Willamette put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They blew past South Salem, posting a 56-20 win. The final result isn't all that surprising considering the Wolverines' considerable advantage in MaxPreps' Oregon football rankings (they are ranked fourth, while the Saxons are ranked 66th).

Mountainside better keep an eye on Zeke Thomas. He was instrumental in Willamette's win, throwing for 262 yards and four TDs on perfect 10-for-10 passing, while also rushing for 56 yards and one score. The dominant performance also gave Thomas a new career-high in passer rating (177.1). Hunter Vaughn was another key player, picking up 134 receiving yards and three touchdowns.

Willamette didn't let much get past them through the air: they limited South Salem to a completion percentage of just 36.5%. The Wolverines weren't nearly as limited: they posted one of 81.2%.

Willamette's defense didn't let Kellen Bowman, get away unscathed either: they got into the backfield for six sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Tony Cumberland and Tripp Johansen, who racked up four sacks between them. Cumberland is also crushing it when it comes to total tackles: he's made at least five every time he's taken the field this season.

Mountainside's victory bumped their record up to 5-3. As for Willamette, their win bumped their record up to 9-0.