Crandall and Kaufman are an even 4-4 against one another since October of 2015, but not for long. After each having a week off, the two teams will shake off the rust and duke it out at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Crandall has five straight wins, Kaufman has four straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Last Friday, Crandall beat Corsicana 38-30. Given the Pirates' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas football rankings (they are ranked 199th, while the Tigers are ranked 602nd) , the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Darrik Ward Jr.
| 09/26/25 vs Corsicana | 187 |
| 09/18/25 @ Poteet | 150 |
| 09/11/25 @ Irving | 147 |
| 09/05/25 vs Hallsville | 118 |
| 08/29/25 @ Mt. Pleasant | 107 |
Darrik Ward Jr. produced another solid performance rushing for 187 yards and two touchdowns. Ward Jr. is crushing it when it comes to rushing yards: he's rushed for at least 107 every time he's taken the field this season. Speaking of playmakers, who could forget Jeremiah Douglas, who went all the way with a kickoff return for a touchdown.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Crandall was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 232 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 232 rushing yards in four consecutive games.
Crandall didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Lemahjae Collins and Carson Lewis.
Meanwhile, it was a proper cat-fight when Kaufman duked it out with Terrell last Friday. The Lions had to suffer through a 56-14 loss at the hands of the Tigers.
Crandall will have to contain Elijah Rose as he made an impact in Kaufman's last game. He rushed for 110 yards and one TD on only 15 carries.
Kaufman now has a losing record of 2-3. As for Crandall, their victory bumped their record up to 5-0.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Crandall has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 231.8 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Kaufman, though, as they've been averaging only 92.6 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Crandall beat Kaufman 31-24 in their previous matchup back in October of 2024. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Rose, who rushed for 152 yards and a pair of scores. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will the Pirates still be able to contain Rose? There's only one way to find out.
