The Linden Tigers will challenge the Colonia Patriots at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Linden took a loss when they played away from home two weeks ago, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Saturday. Their defense stepped up to hand Sayreville a 17-0 shutout.
The critical scores for Linden came from Joe Boyd and Tyrone Hinton.
Linden wouldn't let Sayreville keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Linden can thank Tahad Walker and Semaj Irving for forcing both of them. Irving didn't just play on offense: he also forced a fumble, made eight total tackles, and defended two passes.
Meanwhile, Colonia humbled North Hunterdon with a 35-7 victory. Given the Patriots' advantage in MaxPreps' New Jersey football rankings (they are ranked 105th, while the Lions are ranked 247th), the result on Friday wasn't entirely unexpected.
Colonia's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Julien Jones and Tyler Herman. Jones is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made six or more in the last four games he's played dating back to last season.
The victory got Linden back to even at 1-1. As for Colonia, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 2-0.
Linden beat Colonia 28-20 in their previous meeting back in September of 2023. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Colonia's Jaeden Jones, who rushed for 159 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.0 yards per carry, and also threw for 131 yards and a touchdown. Now that he won't be playing on Saturday, will it be easier for Linden 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
