Football Preview: Gladewater Bears vs. Jefferson Bulldogs
Gladewater has been away from home for three games now, but on Thursday they'll finally make their return. They will host the Jefferson Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m.
Gladewater managed to keep up with Spring Hill until halftime on Friday, but things quickly went downhill from there. Gladewater lost 48-28 to Spring Hill. The Bears gained 239 more yards on the day, but it was the Panthers that made the best use of them.
Meanwhile, Jefferson put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They were the clear victor by a 40-15 margin over Pittsburg. Given the Bulldogs' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas football rankings (they are ranked 182nd, while the Pirates are ranked 602nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Kamran Williams was his usual excellent self, rushing for 200 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.0 yards per carry. That high mark didn't come from nowhere: he now rushed for 124 or more in the last 14 games he's played dating back to last season. Tihmyus Taylor was another key player, throwing for 85 yards and two touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Jefferson was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 265 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 155 rushing yards in 14 consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Gladewater's loss dropped their record down to 2-2. As for Jefferson, their victory bumped their record up to 4-0.
Thursday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Gladewater has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 183 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Jefferson struggles in that department as they've been averaging 268.2. It's looking like Thursday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Gladewater might still be hurting after the 42-21 defeat they got from Jefferson in their previous matchup back in October of 2023. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Williams, who rushed for 155 yards and three touchdowns. Now that Gladewater 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