Football Game Preview: Arcadia Apaches vs. Muir Mustangs

The Arcadia Apaches will head out to challenge the Muir Mustangs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Arcadia has given up an average of 38.8 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

Arcadia is headed into the game out to prove that what happened against Burbank on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. The Apaches were outmatched by the Bulldogs and fell 55-13. While losing is never fun, the Apaches can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 854th, while the Bulldogs are ranked 301st).

The losing side was boosted by Addison 'AJ' Pressnall, who threw for 206 yards and one touchdown.

Meanwhile, Muir had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 33.7 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Friday. They blew past the Falcons 49-0. The Mustangs might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three matchups by 30 points or more this season.

Arcadia better keep an eye on Trey Gamble. He was instrumental in Muir's win, throwing for 300 yards and six TDs while completing 77.3% of his passes. Gamble has been hot recently, having posted four or more passing touchdowns the last three times he's played. Muir's leading receiver Noah Bozeman was Gamble's top target yet again, picking up 88 receiving yards and a pair of scores.

This is the second loss in a row for Arcadia and nudges their season record down to 1-5. As for Muir, their win bumped their record up to 5-1.

Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Arcadia has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 154.3 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Muir, though, as they've been averaging only 79.2 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?

Arcadia took a serious blow against Muir in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, falling 49-3. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of the Mustangs' Alijah Parker, who rushed for 138 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Now that the Apaches know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.