The Melrose Buffaloes will head out on the road to challenge the Tatum Coyotes at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Melrose will be coming into the game with an undefeated record on the line.
Melrose is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: Lordsburg, who was ranked 13th in their home state at the time (Melrose was ranked first). Melrose beat Lordsburg on Friday by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 52-0. The result was nothing new for the Buffaloes, who have now won eight contests by 28 points or more so far this season.
Brayden Eldridge continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 53 yards and two touchdowns, while also picking up 51 receiving yards and a touchdown. Another player making a difference was Josiah Roybal, who threw for 128 yards and two touchdowns on only nine passes.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Melrose was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 247 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in August.
Melrose didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Jaxon Odom, Josh Roybal, and Spencer Eldridge picked up one apiece.
Tatum never got on the board in their matchup last Friday, but that sure wasn't the case in their game against Mescalero Apache last Saturday. They blew past the Chiefs 46-13 on the road. Considering the Coyotes have won three matches by more than 32 points this season, Saturday's blowout was nothing new.
Melrose's win was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 9-0. As for Tatum, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Melrose has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 196.7 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Tatum struggles in that department as they've been averaging 221.3. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Melrose against Tatum in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, as the team secured a 50-0 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Melrose since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
