Football Preview: Ralston Rams vs. Gretna East Griffins
The Ralston Rams will head out to take on the Gretna East Griffins at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Friday, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Ralston beat Crete 19-14. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Rams.
Ralston's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Cade Stix led the charge by rushing for 42 yards and a touchdown, while also throwing for 142 yards while completing 75% of his passes. Conner M Brown handled things on the ground, rushing for 82 yards and a rushing touchdown.
Meanwhile, Gretna East waltzed into their matchup on Friday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They took their game on the road with ease, bagging a 54-0 win over the Trojans. The Griffins pushed the score to 40-0 by the end of the third, a deficit the Trojans had no chance of recovering from.
Seth Kraegel was the offensive standout of the contest as he picked up 94 receiving yards and a touchdown. He showed off some serious burst, cutting upfield on a catch for 51 yards.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Gretna East was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 318 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since the start of last season.
The victory got Ralston back to even at 3-3. As for Gretna East, the win also got them back to even at 3-3.
Thursday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Ralston has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 167 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Gretna East struggles in that department as they've been averaging 150.2. It's looking like Thursday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Ralston took their victory against Gretna East when the teams last played back in September of 2023 by a conclusive 35-14. The rematch might be a little tougher for Ralston since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
