The St. Joseph Catholic Bruins will face off against the St. Joseph Fighting Irish at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Having both just faced considerable losses, both teams are looking to turn things around.
Two weeks ago, St. Joseph Catholic was beaten by Madison-Ridgeland Academy 55-13. While losing is never fun, the Bruins can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Mississippi football rankings (they are ranked 167th, while the Patriots are ranked 11th).
St. Joseph Catholic might have lost, but man, Eli Dampier was a machine: he rushed for 85 yards and a touchdown. The bulk of those rushing yards came from one huge play: a run that gained an incredible 80 yards.
Meanwhile, St. Joseph unfortunately witnessed the end of their seven-game winning streak dating back to last season on Friday. They were dealt a 58-28 defeat at the hands of Greenville Christian. The defensive woes were uncharacteristic for the Fighting Irish, who until this matchup were averaging 18 points allowed.
St. Joseph's loss came about despite a quality game from Victor Baker, who threw for 72 yards and two touchdowns, and also punched in a rushing score. Jaleel Moore got in on the action as well, returning a kick for a touchdown.
St. Joseph wouldn't let Greenville Christian keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. St. Joseph can thank Jayden Moore and Jaleel for forcing both of them.
St. Joseph Catholic now has a losing record at 1-2. As for St. Joseph, their defeat was their first of the season and makes their record 3-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. St. Joseph Catholic has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 224.3 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for St. Joseph, though, as they've been averaging only 65. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
St. Joseph Catholic took their win against St. Joseph in their previous matchup back in September of 2023 by a conclusive 35-12. In that game, St. Joseph Catholic amassed a halftime lead of 35-0, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
