Rock Canyon is 0-7 against Valor Christian since October of 2018 but things could change on Thursday. The Jaguars are taking a road trip to square off against the Eagles at 6:30 p.m. Rock Canyon has given up an average of 29.1 points per game this season, but Thursday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
On Friday, Rock Canyon was beaten by Mountain Vista 54-7. While losing is never fun, the Jaguars can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado football rankings (they are ranked 48th, while the Golden Eagles are ranked second).
Meanwhile, you're bound to get a positive result if you outscore your opponent every quarter and that's exactly how it played out for Valor Christian on Thursday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that they blew Fruita Monument out of the water with a 49-6 final score. The Eagles might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won seven contests by 22 points or more this season.
Rock Canyon better focus on containing Titus Huard and Chase Hanosh as the pair were huge in Valor Christian's win. Huard threw for 109 yards and four TDs while completing 71.4% of his passes, while Hanosh rushed for 112 yards and one touchdown on only 12 carries. Those four passing touchdowns gave Huard a new career-high. Cash Spence was in the mix too, providing Valor Christian with two scores.
Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Valor Christian proved: they limited Fruita Monument to a paltry 1.8 yards per carry. The team can thank Evan Ingalls for the heroic effort on defense: he. Valor Christian's run defense has been on the up-and-up: they allowed 4.57 yards per carry earlier this season, but they've only allowed 8.47 on average over their last five games.
The win was the third in a row for Valor Christian, bringing their record up to 7-2. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 51.3 points over those games. As for Rock Canyon, their loss dropped their record down to 3-6.
Thursday's matchup might be decided on the ground. Rock Canyon has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 163.9 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Valor Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 171.7 rushing yards. There's a good chance Thursday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Rock Canyon was taken down by Valor Christian 59-7 in their previous meeting back in October of 2024. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Hanosh, who rushed for 170 yards and four touchdowns on only 11 carries. Now that the Jaguars know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
