Football Preview: Jasper Bulldogs vs. Columbia Roughnecks
The Jasper Bulldogs will square off against the Columbia Roughnecks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are strolling into their matchups after big wins in their previous games.
Jasper is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They blew past Tarkington 68-14 on Friday. Given the Bulldogs' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas football rankings (they are ranked 417th, while the Longhorns are ranked 952nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Isaiah Coleman, who threw for 283 yards and five touchdowns on only 17 passes, and also rushed for 100 yards and a touchdown. Those 100 rushing yards gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Kiotti Armstrong, who picked up 162 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Jasper was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 261 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Jasper didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Daylon Barlow and La'Darion Adams.
Meanwhile, Columbia got themselves on the board against Harmony School of Innovation on Friday, but Harmony School of Innovation never followed suit. They really took it to the Mustangs for the full four quarters, racking up a 69-0 victory. With that win, the Roughnecks brought their scoring average up to 29.3 points per game.
Columbia got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Xavier Velez out in front who rushed for 58 yards and two touchdowns. Colby Hardin was another key rusher, rushing for 70 yards and a touchdown.
Columbia is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games, which provided a nice bump to their 7-3 record this season. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 37.6 points per game. As for Jasper, their win bumped their record up to 4-6.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Jasper has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 156.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Columbia struggles in that department as they've been averaging 254.1. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Jasper took their victory against Columbia when the teams last played back in November of 2023 by a conclusive 35-12. The rematch might be a little tougher for Jasper 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
