Football Preview: Haskell Haymakers vs. Hulbert Riders
Haskell has gone 4-0 against Hulbert recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. The Haskell Haymakers will square off against the Hulbert Riders at 7:00 p.m. Haskell will be strutting in after a win while Hulbert will be coming in after a defeat.
Haskell is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They put the hurt on Chouteau-Mazie with a sharp 54-32 victory on Friday. The high-flying offensive performance was a huge turnaround for the Haymakers considering their seven-point performance the game before.
Pj Faul was his usual excellent self, rushing for 194 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 9.2 yards per carry, and also throwing for 175 yards and four touchdowns. He showed off some serious burst, turning on the afterburners on one carry for 55 yards. Jake Faul also helped with two touchdowns in total.
Haskell wouldn't let Chouteau-Mazie keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Haskell can thank Blast Salazar and Noah Ellis for forcing both of them. Ellis also set a new season high mark in total tackles with 13.
Meanwhile, Hulbert was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their fifth straight loss. They had to suffer through a 60-16 loss at the hands of Pocola.
Hulbert might have lost, but man, Cody Botts was a machine: he rushed for 149 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries.
Haskell's win ended an eight-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 2-4. As for Hulbert, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-5.
Thursday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Haskell has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 156.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Hulbert struggles in that department as they've been averaging 169.7. It's looking like Thursday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Haskell came out on top in a nail-biter against Hulbert when the teams last played back in September of 2017, sneaking past 26-24. Does Haskell have another victory up their sleeve, or will Hulbert turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
