Football Preview: Hutchinson Salthawks vs. Derby Panthers
Hutchinson is 1-9 against Derby since November of 2014 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Hutchinson Salthawks will welcome the Derby Panthers at 7:00 p.m. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Hutchinson sitting on three straight victories and Derby on four.
Derby's offense is going to have their work cut out for them on Friday: Hutchinson hadn't allowed a single point the last three times they've hit the field. Hutchinson claimed a resounding 47-0 win over South on the road. That looming 47-0 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Salthawks yet this season.
Hutchinson's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged three passes before it was all said and done. It was truly a group effort as Carter Morgan, Tramel Walker, and Terrell King picked up one apiece. What's more, King also racked up 81 rushing yards, the mosthe's had since back in October of 2023.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Hutchinson was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 469 rushing yards. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved they're rushing yard total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Derby won against South last Friday with 59 points and they decided to stick to that point total again on Friday. Derby blew past Maize, posting a 59-7 victory at home. Fans of the Panthers have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 20+ points.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Derby to victory, but perhaps none more so than Arieus Finley, who rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries, and also caught a touchdown. Another signal caller making a difference was Drew Kemp, who threw for 132 yards and four touchdowns while completing 90.9% of his passes.
Hutchinson's win bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Derby, their victory was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 4-0.
Friday's game might be decided in the on the ground. Hutchinson has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 281.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Derby struggles in that department as they've been averaging 235.5. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Hutchinson came up short against Derby in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, falling 27-17. Can Hutchinson avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
