The Cooper Dragons will head out on the road to face off against the Trinity Valley Trojans at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
After a string of four wins, Cooper's good fortune finally ran out on Thursday. The game between Cooper and Houston Christian wasn't particularly close, with Cooper falling 28-14.
Despite the defeat, Cooper got a solid performance out of Dean Calhoun, who rushed for 128 yards and a touchdown. Calhoun is on a roll when it comes to rushing yards, as he's now rushed for 100 or more in the last five games he's played.
Meanwhile, you can't lose the contest if you win every quarter, and that was precisely Trinity Valley's strategy against St. Andrew's on Friday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Trinity Valley blew St. Andrew's out of the water with a 58-6 final score. With Trinity Valley ahead 37-6 at the half, the game was all but over already.
Trinity Valley's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Gavin Parkhurst, who threw for 223 yards and three touchdowns, and also punched in a touchdown on the ground. Trinity Valley also got a significant boost from Ben Ngishu, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 115 yards.
Trinity Valley's victory bumped their season record to 6-1 while Cooper's defeat dropped theirs to 4-4.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's contest: Cooper has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 207.3 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Trinity Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 191.3 per game. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Cooper against Trinity Valley in their previous meeting back in November of 2022 as the team secured a 63-31 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Cooper since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
