Two dominant signal callers in Drew Kates and Jett Lopez are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Richland Royals will face off against the Amarillo Sandies at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Richland is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. Everything went their way against Arlington Heights as Richland made off with a 37-16 victory. Richland's win was all the more impressive since the Yellowjackets were averaging only 13.73 points allowed on the season.
It was another big night for Kates, who threw for 334 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 12.8 yards per attempt, and also rushed for 64 yards and two touchdowns. Jayshon Gibson was another key player, rushing for 223 yards while picking up 10.6 yards per carry.
Richland was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 292 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in November of 2023.
Richland didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Sean Wright and Zaid Walker. Roddrick Roberts was another major factor on D, picking up 0.5 sacks and making 13 total tackles (1.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, Amarillo humbled El Dorado with a 45-14 victory.
Amarillo's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jude Dunivin, who rushed for 159 yards and a touchdown on only 15 carries, and also picked up 92 receiving yards and a touchdown. The bulk of those receiving yards came from one huge play: a catch that gained an incredible 76 yards. Another player making a difference was Lopez, who threw for 283 yards and three touchdowns on only 18 passes.
Amarillo's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 6-4. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 34.8 points. As for Richland, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 9-2.
The upcoming contest will be a clash of competing strengths. Richland has relied on air attacks this season and has averaged 302.8 passing yards per game. Amarillo, on the other hand, has relied on a stout run game: they average 157.6 rushing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Saturday? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
