Two dominant backs in Zack Tayman and Ronnie Kardashian are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Arroyo Grande Eagles will face off against the Mission College Prep Royals at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Arroyo Grande is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 28.2 points per game this season.
Arroyo Grande is probably headed into the contest with a chip on their shoulder considering Salinas just ended the team's six-game winning streak on Friday. They fell 34-24 to the Cowboys.
Despite the loss, Arroyo Grande had strong showings from Tayman, who rushed for 129 yards and two touchdowns, and Caleb Clark, who rushed for 108 yards and a touchdown on only 12 carries. The dominant performance gave Clark a new career-high in rushing yards.
Even though they lost, Arroyo Grande was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 256 rushing yards. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their rushing yard total in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Mission College Prep, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They came out on top against Paso Robles by a score of 26-16 on Friday.
Kardashian was his usual excellent self, rushing for 85 yards and four touchdowns. He is becoming a predictor of Mission College Prep's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is 2-1 (and 2-4 when he doesn't).
Arroyo Grande's defeat dropped their record down to 7-2. As for Mission College Prep, their win bumped their record up to 4-5.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Arroyo Grande has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 187.1 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Mission College Prep struggles in that department as they've been averaging 160. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Arroyo Grande was able to grind out a solid victory over Mission College Prep in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, winning 10-3. The rematch might be a little tougher for Arroyo Grande since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
