Two dominant backs in Connor Rushford and J'Vien Adams are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The DeRidder Dragons will take on the Iowa Yellowjackets at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Last Friday, everything went DeRidder's way against Washington-Marion as DeRidder made off with a 42-22 win. The score at the end of the third wound up being the final score as the Dragons just coasted through the last quarter.
Rushford continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 244 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 10.6 yards per carry. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rushing yards. Javaughn Fairley was another major influence, as he rushed for 51 yards and ran in a TD.
DeRidder was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 367 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
DeRidder's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB three times. In that department, Amari Willis was the leader with two sacks.
Meanwhile, Iowa waltzed into their game on Thursday with six straight wins... but they left with seven. They claimed a resounding 36-0 victory over the Gators. Given the Yellowjackets' advantage in MaxPreps' Louisiana football rankings (they are ranked 33rd, while the Gators are ranked 186th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Adams was his usual excellent self, rushing for 166 yards and a touchdown on only five carries. He really tore up the turf during one magnificent 72-yard run. Jonathan Walker Jr. was another key player, rushing for 77 yards and a touchdown.
DeRidder has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matches, which provided a nice bump to their 5-4 record this season. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 41.8 points per game. As for Iowa, they pushed their record up to 8-1 with the win, which was their third straight on the road.
Thursday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. DeRidder has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 247.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Iowa struggles in that department as they've been averaging 172.9. It's looking like Thursday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
DeRidder strolled past Iowa in their previous meeting back in October of 2020 by a score of 21-7. Does DeRidder have another victory up their sleeve, or will Iowa turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
