Football Game Preview: Sheldon Irish vs. Sprague Olympians

vs

Previous 4 Games

11/15/24 - Home	45-17 W
11/01/24 - Away	52-7 W
09/15/23 - Away	50-19 W
09/16/22 - Home	41-0 W

Sheldon is a perfect 4-0 against Sprague since September of 2022 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The Irish will host the Olympians at 7:00 p.m. Sheldon has given up an average of 27.2 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

Sheldon is headed into the game out to prove that what happened against Grants Pass on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. The Irish lost 34-10 to the Cavemen. The Irish have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Sprague, who bounced back after a loss on the road on October 10th. They walked away with a 32-21 victory over Grants Pass last Friday. The high-flying offensive performance was a huge turnaround for the Olympians considering their seven-point performance the matchup before.

Sheldon better keep an eye on Carter Lovell. He was instrumental in Sprague's win, throwing for 299 yards and three TDs on only 19 passes, while also rushing for 91 yards and one score on only eight carries. Those 299 passing yards gave Lovell a new career-high. Sprague's leading receiver Max Makarenko was Lovell's top target yet again, picking up 175 receiving yards and one touchdown.

Sprague was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 225 rushing yards. They are a perfect 4-0 when they've run for more than 200 yards.

One reason for the win was Sprague's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for eight sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Emmett Hunsaker and Bohdi Jones, who racked up four sacks between them. Jones also made 11 total tackles, which is notable because Sprague is 3-1 when he posts at least four total tackles, but 1-3 otherwise.

The win got Sprague back to even at 4-4. As for Sheldon, their loss dropped their record down to 2-6.

Everything came up roses for Sheldon against Sprague in their previous matchup back in November of 2024, as the squad secured a 45-17 victory. In that contest, the Irish amassed a halftime lead of 31-3, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.