Whitmer is on a three-game streak of home wins, while Perrysburg is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Panthers will host the Yellow Jackets at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Whitmer is probably headed into the contest with a chip on their shoulder considering Clay just ended the team's six-game winning streak on Friday. They and the Eagles were almost perfectly matched up, but they suffered a 29-28 loss. The game was a 14-14 toss-up at halftime, but the Panthers couldn't quite close it out.
Whitmer might have lost, but man, Jaden Jones was a machine: he rushed for 209 yards and two scores while picking up 8.7 yards per carry. The team also got some help courtesy of Brandon Waddell, who picked up 71 receiving yards and one touchdown.
Meanwhile, Perrysburg hadn't done well against Anthony Wayne recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. The Yellow Jackets put the hurt on the Generals with a sharp 24-3 victory. The result was nothing new for the Yellow Jackets, who have now won seven matchups by 21 points or more so far this season.
Whitmer better focus on containing Liam Nowakowski and Brady Maxwell as the pair were huge in Perrysburg's win. Nowakowski rushed for 88 yards and one TD, while Maxwell rushed for 97 yards and a pair of scores.
Perrysburg's run defense was locked in: Anthony Wayne could only muster -0.3 yards per carry. The team can thank Brandon Badik for the heroic effort on defense: he. Perrysburg's ground attack was stronger, having averaged 4.3.
Perrysburg's defense didn't let Porter Brungard, get away unscathed either: they got into the backfield for three sacks. Giano Walkosky was especially locked on to Anthony Wayne's QB and sacked him twice.
Perrysburg's win bumped their record up to 8-1. As for Whitmer, their defeat was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 7-2.
Friday's contest might be decided on the ground. Whitmer has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 226.3 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Perrysburg struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 213.7 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Whitmer strolled past Perrysburg when the teams last played back in October of 2024 by a score of 27-13. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Yellow Jackets' Josh Takats, who rushed for 84 yards and one touchdown, and also threw for 157 yards and one TD. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for the Panthers to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
