Preview: Mound City Panthers vs. Rock Port Blue Jays
The Mound City Panthers will head out on the road to face off against the Rock Port Blue Jays at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Missouri (Mound City is ranked 22nd, while Rock Port is ranked 19th).
Last Friday, Mound City was fully in charge, breezing past Stewartsville 58-12 on the road. The victory was just what Mound City needed coming off of a 54-26 loss in their prior game.
Mound City's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Cole Gillenwater, who rushed for 106 yards and two touchdowns on only five carries, and also threw for 19 yards and a touchdown. Gillenwater is on a roll when it comes to solo tackles, as he's now made six or more in the last three games he's played. kane derr was in the mix too, providing Mound City with two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Rock Port pushed their score all the way to 40 on Friday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They received a tough blow as they fell 56-40 to South Nodaway. Rock Port has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Rock Port's defeat came about despite a quality game from Corbyn Jakub, who picked up 128 receiving yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries. Jakub hasn't dropped below sixsolo tackles for three straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Cade Makings, who threw for 159 yards and three touchdowns.
With Mound City's win and Rock Port's defeat, both teams now sport identical 3-6 records.
Friday's game might be decided on the ground as these two are both standouts in the run game. Mound City has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 187.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Rock Port struggles in that department as they've been even better at 200.2 per game. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Mound City was dealt a bruising 62-34 loss at the hands of Rock Port in their previous meeting on October 6th. Can Mound City avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
