Tupelo is on a five-game streak of home wins (dating back to last season), while Houston is on a nine-game streak of away wins (also dating back to last season): one of those streaks is about to end. The Tupelo Golden Wave will welcome the Houston Mustangs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both have allowed few points on average, (Tupelo: 12, Houston: 15.6) so any points scored will be well earned.
Houston better have a healthy lead at halftime, because if last week is any indication, that's when Tupelo really get things going. Tupelo put the hurt on Oxford with a sharp 34-10 win on Friday. The Golden Wave might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three matches by 24 points or more this season.
Jaeden Hill continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 203 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 9.2 yards per carry. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rushing yards. Tupelo also got help from Tyquez Raines, who showed off his sure hands for 80 receiving yards.
Another reason for the win was Tupelo's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for six sacks. In that department, Devontray Brewer was the leader with three. Malachi Gilleylen was another major factor on D, picking up a sack and making nine total tackles (2.0 for loss).
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Tupelo was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 292 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 151 rushing yards in three consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, after a string of 16 wins dating back to last season, Houston's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They took a 21-14 hit to the loss column at the hands of Whitehaven. The game marked the Mustangs' lowest-scoring contest so far this season.
Houston's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Andre Allen and Derrick Miller Jr..
Tupelo's victory bumped their record up to 4-0. As for Houston, their defeat was their first of the season and makes their record 4-1.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Tupelo has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 197.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Houston struggles in that department as they've been averaging 190.2. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Tupelo came up short against Houston in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, falling 38-33. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Miller Jr., who picked up 152 receiving yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for 40 yards. Now that Tupelo knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
