Football Game Preview: Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield] Miners vs. Forest Park Trojans

Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield] is 0-4 against Forest Park since October of 2021 but things could change on Friday. The Miners will head out on the road to challenge the Trojans at 6:00 p.m. Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield] is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.

On Saturday, everything came up roses for Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield] against Ontonagon as the team secured a 60-6 victory. Fans of the Miners have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 20+ points.

It was another big night for Jayden Verrett, who rushed for 179 yards and three TDs on only 13 carries, and also threw for 134 yards and four touchdowns while completing 71.4% of his passes. His longest rush was for an impressive 58 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. Leland Hollenbeck was another key player, gaining 146 total yards and four touchdowns.

They were just one part of a punishing run game: Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield] was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 246 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 201 rushing yards in six consecutive matchups dating back to last season.

Matthew Switzer

Total Tackles

09/27/25 vs Ontonagon	8
09/19/25 vs Superior Central	10
09/12/25 @ Ishpeming	21
09/05/25 vs Rapid River	5
08/28/25 @ Carney-Nadeau	10
+ 3 more games

Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield]'s defense stepped up as well, laying out the QB six times. The heavy lifting was done by Matthew Switzer and Henry Jenkins, who racked up four sacks between them. Switzer has been hot, having also posted five or more total tackles the last eight times he's played. Hollenbeck got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.

Forest Park played against Lake Linden-Hubbell on Saturday and lost via forfeit.

Forest Park's loss dropped their record down to 1-4. As for Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield], their win bumped their record up to 5-0.

Gogebic [Johnston/Wakefield] suffered a grim 33-13 defeat to Forest Park in their previous matchup back in October of 2024. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of the Trojans' Dax Huuki, who rushed for 136 yards and a pair of scores on only 12 carries. Now that the Miners know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.