The Harlan Hawks are taking a road trip to square off against the Marshall Rams at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Harlan has four straight victories, Marshall has five straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Harlan is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They took their matchup on Friday with ease, bagging a 55-7 win over O'Connor. The team's explosion on offense also rewarded the Hawks with their most commanding win of the season.
G'Ivori Graham was his usual excellent self, rushing for 75 yards and two touchdowns on only nine carries, while also picking up 116 receiving yards and one TD. Aldric Trotter was another key player, throwing for 240 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 81.2% of his passes.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Harlan was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 229 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 161 rushing yards every time they've taken the field this season.
Another reason for the win was Harlan's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for three sacks. The team can thank two different players for their defensive prowess: Jayson Contreras and Seth Duby, who each picked up one sack apiece. Taveion Ford got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Marshall played a tough contest on Thursday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were dealt a 63-7 loss at the hands of Sotomayor. The Rams were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 35-0.
Marshall's defeat dropped their record down to 0-5. As for Harlan, their record now sits at 4-0.
Everything came up roses for Harlan against Marshall when the teams last played back in October of 2024, as the squad secured a 49-7 victory. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Rams' Jalen Glover, who rushed for 203 yards while picking up 7.8 yards per carry. Now that he won't be playing on Saturday, will it be easier for the Hawks to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
