Two dominant backs in Blake Burton and Lee Williams are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Madera Coyotes will be playing at home against the Justin Garza Guardians at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Madera is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 37.4 points per game this season.
Madera is headed into Friday's matchup looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Friday. They took a 35-28 hit to the loss column at the hands of Sanger. While losing is never fun, the Coyotes can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 279th, while the Apaches are ranked 102nd).
Madera might have lost, but man, Joel Arellano was a machine: he threw for 296 yards and two touchdowns, and also punched in a touchdown on the ground. Jayden Martinez was another key player, picking up 125 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Justin Garza, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They walked away with a 33-26 victory over Edison on Friday. The win was some much needed relief for the Guardians as it spelled an end to their three-game losing streak.
Williams continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 206 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.6 yards per carry. His longest rush was for an incredible 77 yards. The team also got some help courtesy of Bohden Smith, who threw for 103 yards and two touchdowns.
Justin Garza was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 274 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Madera's loss dropped their record down to 5-4. As for Justin Garza, their victory bumped their record up to 4-5.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's match: Madera has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 366.2 total yards per game. It's a different story for Justin Garza, though, as they've been averaging only 235.6. Will Madera be able to march up the field at their leisure again, or will Justin Garza flip the script?
Madera barely slipped by Justin Garza when the teams last played back in October of 2023, winning 28-27. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Justin Garza's Caleb Matthews, who rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown on only eight carries, and also threw for 164 yards on 19 of 30 attempts. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Madera still be able to contain Matthews? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
