Football Game Preview: Dublin Jerome Celtics vs. Hilliard Bradley Jaguars

The Dublin Jerome Celtics will challenge the Hilliard Bradley Jaguars at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

Dublin Jerome not only won on Friday, but they posted their biggest win since August 29th (when they won 45-0). They blew past Thomas Worthington 35-7. Given the Celtics' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio football rankings (they are ranked 131st, while the CARDINALS are ranked 296th) , the win wasn't entirely unexpected.

Dublin Jerome found their leader in sophomore Henry Kirk, who rushed for 97 yards and three TDs. Those three rushing touchdowns set a new season-high mark for Kirk. Michael Wald was another key player, throwing for 286 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Dublin Jerome proved: they limited Thomas Worthington to a paltry -1.6 yards per carry. The Celtics' ground attack was stronger, having averaged 3.3.

Dublin Jerome didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Nate Allen and Mateo Karam. Karam also put up a receiving touchdown, which was his first of the season.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Hilliard Bradley, who bounced back after a loss on the road two weeks ago. They blew past Dublin Coffman 29-3 on Friday.

The victory got Dublin Jerome back to even at 5-5. As for Hilliard Bradley, the win also got them back to even at 5-5.

Dublin Jerome came up short against Hilliard Bradley in their previous meeting back in September of 2023, falling 40-35. Can the Celtics avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.