Eastwood and Franklin are an even 4-4 against one another since November of 2014, but not for long. The Eastwood Troopers will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Franklin Cougars at 7:30 p.m. Both might be coming in a bit winded given these two teams combined for 941 yards in their previous games.
Eastwood is headed into the match out to prove that what happened against Eastlake on Thursday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Eastwood came up short against Eastlake, falling 49-28.
Despite the loss, Eastwood got top-tier performance from Jayden Martinez, who picked up 95 receiving yards and a touchdown, and also rushed for 72 yards and a touchdown. Another receiver making a difference was Caleb Flores, who picked up 97 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Franklin was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Friday as they fell 46-42 to Montwood. The Cougars were up 21-6 in the third but couldn't hold on to the lead.
Despite their defeat, Franklin saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Ernie Powers, who rushed for 225 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.7 yards per carry, was perhaps the best of all. Powers showed off some serious burst, cutting through the defense on one rush that went for 64 yards. The team also got some help courtesy of Atreyu DeLaRiva, who rushed for 137 yards and a touchdown on only 12 carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Franklin was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 409 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 184 rushing yards in 12 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Franklin didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Noah Friesen and Joseuberto (JB) Bodoni-Guzman.
Eastwood's loss dropped their record down to 3-3. As for Franklin, their defeat dropped their record down to an identical 3-3.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Eastwood has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 219.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Franklin struggles in that department as they've been averaging 297.5. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Eastwood was able to grind out a solid victory over Franklin in their previous matchup back in October of 2023, winning 38-31. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Franklin's Shay Smith, who rushed for 170 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 8.5 yards per carry, and also threw for 211 yards on 14 of 33 attempts. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for Eastwood to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
