Marshall County is a perfect 8-0 against Spring Hill since October of 2015 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The Tigers will be playing at home against the Raiders at 7:00 p.m. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Spring Hill's offense is going to have their work cut out for them on Friday: Marshall County hadn't allowed a single point the last three times they've hit the field. The Tigers breezed past Montgomery Central to the tune of 50-0 two weeks ago. The Tigers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three matchups by 45 points or more this season.
Tot Gardner
| 10/09/25 @ Montgomery Central | 3 |
| 10/03/25 vs Columbia Academy | 2 |
| 09/12/25 @ Columbia Central | 2 |
| 09/26/25 @ Battle Creek | 1 |
Marshall County found their leader in sophomore Tot Gardner, who rushed for 146 yards and three TDs on only 11 carries. The Tigers are undefeated when Gardner posts two or more rushing touchdowns, but 2-3 otherwise.
Marshall County's run defense was locked in: Montgomery Central could only muster 2.9 yards per carry. The team can thank Anthony Chavez for the heroic effort on defense: he. Marshall County's run defense has been on the up-and-up: they allowed 3.94 yards per carry earlier this season, but they've only allowed 8.03 on average over their last five games.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Spring Hill, who bounced back after a loss on the road on October 4th. They blew past Battle Creek 35-0 on Friday. The contest marked the Raiders' most dominant victory of the season.
Marshall County better keep an eye on Lionel Brooks. He was instrumental in Spring Hill's win, rushing for 255 yards and four scores while picking up 13.4 yards per carry. Those 255 rushing yards gave Brooks a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Jonah Gipson, who rushed for 59 yards on only seven carries.
On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Spring Hill's defense and their eight sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Gavin Jacobs and Carson Huffstutler, who racked up 6.5 sacks between them. Huffstutler is also crushing it when it comes to total tackles: he's made at least seven every time he's taken the field this season. Another thorn in Battle Creek's side was Nathan Highland, who picked up 0.5 sacks, made eight total tackles (2.0 for loss), and defended one pass.
Marshall County is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games. That's provided a nice bump to their 5-3 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 13.2 points on average over those games. As for Spring Hill, their victory bumped their record up to 3-4.
Friday's matchup will pit two of the most dominant backs against one another: Gardner and Brooks. Gardner just won't slow down this season and has run in 8 touchdowns while averaging 66 rushing yards per game. Brooks has been a dominant force too and has run in 11 touchdowns while averaging 144.4 rushing yards per game.
Marshall County was able to grind out a solid win over Spring Hill when the teams last played back in October of 2020, winning 21-14. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Raiders' Mac Richie, who rushed for 61 yards and one touchdown, and also caught one TD. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for the Tigers to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
