Football Preview: Maclay Marauders vs. Deerfield-Windsor Knights
Maclay hasn't had much luck against Deerfield-Windsor recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Maclay Marauders will square off against the Deerfield-Windsor Knights at 7:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Maclay took a loss when they played away from home last Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They breezed by North Florida Christian at home to the tune of 41-0.
It was another big night for George Grant, who threw for 276 yards and four touchdowns. Henry Richardson was Grant's top target, picking up 41 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Maclay's defense stepped up as well, laying out Tommy Coyne. eight times. Abram Wildrick was especially locked on to North Florida Christian's QB and sacked him twice. Wildrick is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made five or more in the last five games he's played dating back to last season. Maclay got some further help from Rollins Miller: he picked up a sack and made nine total tackles (2.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, Deerfield-Windsor hadn't done well against Valwood recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Deerfield-Windsor was the clear victor by a 27-6 margin over Valwood.
A big part of Deerfield-Windsor's victory came down to the chemistry between Lane Sceals and his top target Gabe Daniel. Sceals threw for 421 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 12.0 yards per attempt while Daniel picked up 189 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Daniel torched the secondary when he pulled down a catch that went for 85 yards.
Deerfield-Windsor didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Jackson Woodham, Grier Morey, and Colin Snipes picked up one apiece.
Maclay pushed their record up to 5-2 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Deerfield-Windsor, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matches, which provided a nice bump to their 7-2 record this season.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Maclay has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 158.4 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Deerfield-Windsor struggles in that department as they've been averaging 174.6. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Maclay couldn't quite finish off Deerfield-Windsor in their previous matchup back in August of 2023 and fell 30-28. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Sceals, who threw for 151 yards and three touchdowns. Now that Maclay knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
