Sugar-Salem and Shelley are an even 5-5 against one another since October of 2014, but not for long. The Sugar-Salem Diggers will face off against the Shelley Russets at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Shelley took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Sugar-Salem, who comes in off a win.
Shelley is hoping to do what Snake River couldn't on Friday: put an end to Sugar-Salem's winning streak (dating back to last season), which now stands at 13 games. Sugar-Salem claimed a resounding 41-6 win over Snake River on the road. Given the Diggers' advantage in MaxPreps' Idaho football rankings (they are ranked seventh, while the Panthers are ranked 53rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Dawson McInelly had a dynamite game for Sugar-Salem, rushing for 88 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries, while also picking up 41 receiving yards and a touchdown. Ace Clark also deserves a mention for his punt return touchdown.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Sugar-Salem was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 248 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 164 rushing yards in 13 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Friday just wasn't the day for Shelley's offense. They were outmatched by Star Valley on the road and fell 44-0. The defeat continues a trend for the Russets in their matchups with the Braves: they've now lost three in a row.
Sugar-Salem's victory was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 2-0. As for Shelley, their loss dropped their record down to 1-1.
Everything came up roses for Sugar-Salem against Shelley when the teams last played back in September of 2023 as the squad secured a 42-14 win. In that game, Sugar-Salem amassed a halftime lead of 27-0, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
