The Coal City Coalers will take on the Herscher Tigers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Coal City's defense has only allowed 11 points per game this season, so Herscher's offense will have their work cut out for them.
Coal City is probably headed into the game with a chip on their shoulder considering Wilmington just ended the team's five-game winning streak on Friday. They took a 21-14 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Wildcats. The loss continues a trend for the Coalers in their matchups with the Wildcats: they've now lost five in a row.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Herscher, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They were the clear victor by a 28-7 margin over Lisle on Friday. That 21 point margin sets a new team best for the Tigers this season.
It was another big night for Alek Draper, who rushed for 278 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 10.3 yards per carry, and also picked up 52 receiving yards.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Herscher was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 416 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Coal City's defeat ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 5-2. As for Herscher, they now have a winning record of 4-3.
Everything came up roses for Coal City against Herscher in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, as the squad secured a 45-7 victory. In that contest, Coal City amassed a halftime lead of 33-7, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
