Football Preview: Maxwell Panthers vs. Portola Tigers
A feisty cat fight will be fought when Panthers challenges the Portola Tigers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Maxwell is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 43.9 points per game this season.
Maxwell is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They simply couldn't be stopped on Friday as they easily beat Los Molinos 63-28 at home. Considering the Panthers have won five matchups by more than 19 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
It was another big night for Erik New, who rushed for 298 yards and four touchdowns on only 15 carries, and also picked up 111 receiving yards and a touchdown. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 123.6 rushing yards per game. Noel Velazquez was another key player, throwing for 230 yards and three touchdowns while completing 81.8% of his passes.
Maxwell wouldn't let Los Molinos keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force four fumbles. It was truly a group effort as Logan Lazarus, Rosendo Salazar, Tanner Vierra, and New picked up one apiece. Lazarus also set a new season high mark in total tackles with nine.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Maxwell was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 442 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 162 rushing yards in seven consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Portola lost to Biggs on the road by a 30-13 margin on Friday.
Maxwell's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-1. As for Portola, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-6.
Maxwell suffered a grim 35-13 defeat to Portola in their previous matchup back in September of 2023. Thankfully for Maxwell, Cody Wilmer (who rushed for 164 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
