Two dominant signal callers in Cam O'Hara and Rio Litmer are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Cooper Jaguars will face off against the Highlands Bluebirds on Friday. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Cooper sitting on 12 straight wins and Highlands on seven.
Cooper is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They blew past Scott County 45-20. Considering the Jaguars have won ten contests by more than 24 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Keagan Maher and O'Hara were among the main playmakers for Cooper as the former rushed for 161 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 9.5 yards per carry and the latter threw for 214 yards and three touchdowns while completing 83.3% of his passes. What's more, O'Hara also racked up 39 rushing yards, the most he's had since back in September of 2023. Isaiah Johnson was O'Hara's top target, picking up 86 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Cooper was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 200 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 165 rushing yards in four consecutive matches.
Cooper wouldn't let Scott County keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Cooper can thank Alex Vogelpohl and Christian Brown for forcing both of them.
Meanwhile, Highlands faced Woodford County in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. Highlands enjoyed a cozy 55-38 victory over Woodford County. The defensive woes were uncharacteristic for the Bluebirds, who until this game were averaging 12.15 points allowed.
It was another big night for Litmer, who threw for 292 yards and three touchdowns on only 18 passes, and also rushed for 74 yards. Another player making a difference was Adam Surrey, who picked up 175 receiving yards.
Cooper pushed their record up to 12-0 with the win, which was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 26.5 points. As for Highlands, they are on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 11-2 record this season.
We should be in store for an exciting game as Cooper and Highlands have no problem gaining yardage. Cooper has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 376.8 total yards per game. However, it's not like Highlands struggles in that department as they've been averaging 367.1. With a pair of commanding offenses duking it out, the defenses are going to have their work cut out for them.
Cooper skirted past Highlands 24-21 when the teams last played back in September. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Litmer, who threw for 238 yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for 47 yards. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Cooper still be able to contain Litmer? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
