The Blue Mountain Eagles will challenge the Northwestern Lehigh Tigers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both are strolling into their matchups after big wins in their previous games.
Northwestern Lehigh is hoping to do what Jim Thorpe couldn't on Friday: put an end to Blue Mountain's winning streak, which now stands at three games. Blue Mountain simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Jim Thorpe 49-0 on the road. Given the Eagles' advantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania football rankings (they are ranked 69th, while the Olympians are ranked 329th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Blue Mountain's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Brady Strause led the charge by throwing for 142 yards and three touchdowns while completing 75% of his passes, and also rushing for 39 yards. The dominant performance gave him a new career- in rushing yards. Another pass catcher making a difference was Gaige Guers, who picked up 95 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Another reason for the win was Blue Mountain's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for three sacks. In that department, Reese Miller was the leader with two. He didn't just play on offense: he also picked up two sacks and made eight total tackles.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Blue Mountain was moving up and down the field and finished the game with 463 total yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Jim Thorpe only gained 45.
Meanwhile, you're bound to get a positive result if you outscore your opponent every quarter, and that's exactly how it played out for Northwestern Lehigh on Thursday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that they blew Bangor out of the water with a 55-7 final score. Fans of the Tigers have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 20+ point.
Blue Mountain pushed their record up to 3-0 with that victory, which was their seventh straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Northwestern Lehigh, the win was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 3-0.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Blue Mountain has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 224.7 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Northwestern Lehigh struggles in that department as they've been averaging 209.7. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Blue Mountain came up short against Northwestern Lehigh in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, falling 28-21. Can Blue Mountain avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
