Rusk and Center are an even 3-3 against one another since August of 2016, but not for long. The Rusk Eagles will head out to challenge the Center Roughriders at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Rusk is headed into the matchup out to prove that what happened against Carthage on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Rusk was beaten by Carthage 49-7. The defeat continues a trend for the Eagles in their matchups with the Bulldogs: they've now lost five in a row.
Meanwhile, there was early excitement for Center after they claimed the first score on Friday, but it was Athens who ended up claiming the real prize. Center took a 43-26 bruising from Athens. While the Roughriders didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Hornets 10-0 in the first quarter.
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Timothy Johnson, who picked up 153 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He was no stranger to the big play, connecting on a big catch that went for 56 yards. Center also got a significant boost from Jaysis Villegas, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 116 yards.
Even though they lost, Center was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 256 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 169 rushing yards in three consecutive contests.
Rusk's record now sits at 2-7. As for Center, their record is now 7-2.
Rusk was dealt a bruising 76-48 loss at the hands of Center in their previous meeting back in September of 2023. Thankfully for Rusk, Emonte Cross (who threw for 306 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 11.8 yards per attempt, and also rushed for 73 yards and two touchdowns on only nine carries) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
