Football Preview: Fruitland Grizzlies vs. Payette Pirates
Fruitland is 9-1 against Payette since September of 2014, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Fruitland Grizzlies will challenge the Payette Pirates at 7:00 p.m. Fruitland is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
Fruitland is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They took their game at home on Friday with ease, bagging a 61-13 victory over Cole Valley Christian. The Grizzlies might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three contests by 21 points or more this season.
Fruitland found their leader in underclassman Titus Vidlak, who threw for 242 yards and five touchdowns while completing 80% of his passes, and also rushed for 69 yards and a touchdown on only seven carries. The dominant performance gave Vidlak a new career-high in rushing yards. Coye Coffman was another key player, picking up 70 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Fruitland was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 237 rushing yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Cole Valley Christian only rushed for 113.
Meanwhile, Payette took a blow against Homedale on Friday, falling 59-7. While losing is never fun, the Pirates can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Idaho football rankings (they are ranked 78th, while the Trojans are ranked 17th).
Fruitland's win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-0. As for Payette, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 3-2.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Fruitland has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 210.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Payette struggles in that department as they've been averaging 180.6. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Fruitland against Payette in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, as the team secured a 43-14 victory. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Payette's Tyler Feeley, who rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for Fruitland to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
