Ballinger will square off against De Leon at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Ballinger has given up an average of 30.3 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Ballinger's offense might be in the hot seat on Friday considering what happened against Hamilton on Friday. They took a blow against the Bulldogs, falling 61-0. The Bearcats have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Meanwhile, while De Leon put up plenty of points on Friday, the same can't be said for Coleman. The Bearcats claimed a resounding 58-0 win over the Bluecats. The Bearcats might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won four games by 20 points or more this season.
Ballinger better keep an eye on Heston Jobe. He was instrumental in De Leon's win, throwing for 240 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 11.4 yards per attempt, and also punching in one score on the ground. Jobe has become a key player for the Bearcats: the team is undefeated when he posts at least three passing touchdowns, but 1-2 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Adan Salinas, who rushed for 67 yards and a pair of TDs.
De Leon didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Trenton Zmeskal and Colt Schwertner. De Leon received some extra help from Bryce Burkeen, whose fumble return for a touchdown made for one of the most unforgettable moments.
De Leon's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-2. The home wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.5 points over those games. As for Ballinger, they now have a losing record of 3-4.
Ballinger was dealt a bruising 55-13 loss at the hands of De Leon in their previous meeting back in October of 2024. That matchup was all but decided by halftime, at which point Ballinger was down 28-7.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps