The Norris Titans will challenge the Gretna Dragons at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Norris knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 31 points or more in their past nine contests -- so hopefully Gretna likes a good challenge.
Norris was handed a heart-breaking three-point defeat in their last game, but they sure didn't let that happen against Elkhorn on Friday. The Titans put the hurt on the Antlers with a sharp 42-19 win. Given the Titans' advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska football rankings (they are ranked seventh, while the Antlers are ranked 58th) , the win wasn't entirely unexpected.
Markus Nelson
| 10/24/25 @ Elkhorn | 168 |
| 10/17/25 @ Waverly | 132 |
| 10/10/25 vs Beatrice | 138 |
| 10/02/25 @ Standing Bear | 55 |
| 09/26/25 vs Pius X | 84 |
| + 2 more games |
Markus Nelson had another great game (as he tends to do), rushing for 168 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 9.9 yards per carry. That's the most rushing yards he has posted since back in September. The team also got some help courtesy of Evan Greenfield, who rushed for 81 yards and one score on only eight carries.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Norris was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 311 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 185 rushing yards in four consecutive matchups.
Norris didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Kyson Gana and Chris Garner Jr..
Meanwhile, Gretna unfortunately witnessed the end of their three-game winning streak on Friday. They fell 35-28 to Gretna East. The Dragons gained 100 more yards on the day, but it was the Griffins that made the best use of them.
Norris will have to keep a close watch on Michael Knudsen and Bryce Lakers, a pair of players who had a big impact on Gretna's prior game. Knudsen threw for 333 yards and three TDs, while Lakers picked up 152 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns. Knudsen is becoming a predictor of Gretna's success: when he posts at least three passing touchdowns the team is 4-1 (and 1-3 when he doesn't).
Norris' record now sits at 8-1. As for Gretna, their loss was their first in the district, dropping their district record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 5-4.
The upcoming contest will be a clash of competing strengths. Norris has deployed a run-first offense that has averaged 241.2 rushing yards a game. Meanwhile, Gretna has preferred to attack from the air: they average 277 passing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Friday? There's only one way to find out.
Norris strolled past Gretna in their previous matchup back in September by a score of 52-35. Do the Titans have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Dragons turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
