Football Preview: Beaumont Cougars vs. Redlands East Valley Wildcats
Beaumont has gone 4-0 against Redlands East Valley recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. A feisty cat fight will be fought when Cougars takes on the Redlands East Valley Wildcats at 7:30 p.m. The timing is sure in Beaumont's favor as the team sits on three straight wins at home while Redlands East Valley has been banged up by seven consecutive losses on the road dating back to last season.
Beaumont will bounce into Thursday's contest after beating Citrus Valley, who they had gone 1-7 against in their eight prior meetings. Beaumont blew past Citrus Valley, posting a 35-3 victory at home. The Cougars might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won four matches by 29 points or more this season.
Beaumont got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Jeremiah Duhu out in front who threw for 107 yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for 73 yards and a touchdown. Duhu was no stranger to the big play, taking off on a dash that went for 55 yards. Trashawn James-Reek was another key back, rushing for 118 yards and a touchdown on only 13 carries.
Beaumont didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Tyler Dyer, Jaden Subero, and Jeremiah McCarty picked up one apiece. Beaumont got some further help from Matthew Casas: he picked up a sack and made 19 total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Beaumont was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 201 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 181 rushing yards in five consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Redlands East Valley scored the most points they've had all season on Thursday, but it wasn't enough. They lost 67-45 to Yucaipa. While losing is never fun, the Wildcats can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 579th, while the Thunderbirds are ranked 268th).
The match pitted two dominant backs against one another in Nathen Lopez and Logan Barbour. Barbour had a great game and rushed for 260 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 9.6 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Lopez was balling out in the loss, rushing for 107 yards on only ten carries, while also catching a touchdown.
Beaumont's victory bumped their record up to 7-1. As for Redlands East Valley, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-7.
Thursday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Beaumont has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 169.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Redlands East Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 159.2. It's looking like Thursday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Beaumont against Redlands East Valley when the teams last played back in October of 2023, as the squad secured a 56-12 win. Does Beaumont have another victory up their sleeve, or will Redlands East Valley turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
