The Joplin Eagles will take on the Republic Tigers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Joplin took a loss when they played away from home two weeks ago, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They blew past Glendale 45-21. That 24 point margin sets a new team best for the Eagles this season.
Toryn Jones was nothing short of spectacular: he rushed for 202 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.8 yards per carry. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rushing yards. Another player making a difference was Davin Thomas, who gained 104 total yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Republic had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 30.5 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They claimed a resounding 49-17 win over the Chiefs at home. The Tigers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three matchups by 26 points or more this season.
Preston McCracken continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 134 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 7.4 yards per carry. The team also got some help courtesy of Izaiah Hull, who rushed for 137 yards on only ten carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Republic was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 428 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 176 rushing yards in four consecutive contests.
Joplin's victory bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Republic, their win bumped their record up to an identical 3-1.
Joplin suffered a grim 38-15 defeat to Republic when the teams last played back in September of 2023. Will Joplin have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other football content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
