Palm Harbor University is on a three-game streak of home losses, and Steinbrenner a three-game streak of away losses. However, someone's due for a change in luck on Friday. The Palm Harbor University Hurricanes will welcome the Steinbrenner Warriors at 7:00 p.m. Palm Harbor University will be strutting in after a victory while Steinbrenner will be coming in after a loss.
On Friday, Palm Harbor University earned a 14-3 win over Boca Ciega.
The critical scores for Palm Harbor University came from Ryan Fuelling and Matt Iaconis.
Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Palm Harbor University proved: they limited Boca Ciega to a paltry 1.8 yards per carry. While two picked up at least four total tackles, Michael Willock stood above the rest. He picked up a sack and made four total tackles (2.0 for loss). Sadly, that's becoming something of a trend for Palm Harbor University; they were averaging 4.7yards per carry per game earlier this season, but in their last three contests they've fallen to only 5.1 per game.
Palm Harbor University didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Chris Estep and Joey Silvestro.
Meanwhile, Friday just wasn't the day for Steinbrenner's offense. They were dealt a 58-0 defeat at the hands of Armwood on Friday. While losing is never fun, the Warriors can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida football rankings (they are ranked 281st, while the Hawks are ranked eighth).
The victory got Palm Harbor University back to even at 4-4. As for Steinbrenner, their loss dropped their record down to 1-7.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the trenches. Palm Harbor University has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 181.9 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Steinbrenner, though, as they've been averaging only 67.5 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Palm Harbor University came up short against Steinbrenner when the teams last played back in October of 2024, falling 38-34. Thankfully for the Hurricanes, Emmanuel 'Papi' Arango (who rushed for 140 yards and three TDs) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
