Football Preview: Patrick Henry Patriots vs. Columbus Grove Bulldogs
Patrick Henry and Columbus Grove are an even 4-4 against one another since September of 2015, but not for long. The Patrick Henry Patriots will venture away from home to take on the Columbus Grove Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.
Last Friday, Patrick Henry blew past Ayersville, posting a 48-2 win on the road. Given the Patriots' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio football rankings (they are ranked 205th, while the Pilots are ranked 523rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Meanwhile, Columbus Grove took their contest on the road on Friday with ease, bagging a 42-14 victory over Liberty-Benton. That's two games straight that the Bulldogs have won by exactly 28 points.
Trenton Barraza was a one-man wrecking crew for Columbus Grove as he rushed for 148 yards and a touchdown on only 15 carries. Trevon Baxter made the highlight reel by snagging an interception and taking it all the way to the house.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Columbus Grove was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 306 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in October of 2023.
Columbus Grove's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Baxter and Gavin Barraza. Baxter's also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, making five total tackles and defending a pass in addition to snagging an interception which he returned for a touchdown.
The win made it two in a row for Patrick Henry and bumps their season record up to 2-0. As for Columbus Grove, they pushed their record up to 2-0 with that victory, which was their fourth straight on the road dating back to last season.
Patrick Henry was able to grind out a solid win over Columbus Grove when the teams last played back in September of 2023, winning 40-28. The rematch might be a little tougher for Patrick Henry 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
