Preview: Bradford Tornadoes vs. Cocoa Tigers
Bradford has enjoyed the comforts of home their last seven games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will face off against the Cocoa Tigers at 8:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams have allowed few points on average, (Bradford: 5, Cocoa: 9.2) so any points scored will be well earned.
It can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Bradford had no problem doing just that on Friday. In a tight matchup that could have gone either way, they made off with a 22-21 victory over the Crusaders.
Meanwhile, Cocoa entered their tilt with Booker with ten consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with 11. Cocoa blew past Booker 41-3 at home. Cocoa might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team's won 11 matches by 20 points or more this season.
Cocoa's win on Friday was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Jayvan Boggs, who picked up 141 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Boggs is on a roll when it comes to receiving yards, as he's now posted 100 or more in the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was Latrison Lane, who rushed for 129 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries.
Bradford pushed their record up to 14-0 with that victory, which was their tenth straight at home. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 34.8 points per game. As for Cocoa, their win bumped their record up to 13-1.
Bradford came up short against Cocoa in their previous matchup back in December of 2022, falling 31-21. Thankfully for Bradford, Blake Boda (who threw for 328 yards and two touchdowns while completing 76% of his passes) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
