The Minneola Wildcats will head out on the road to square off against the Bucklin Red Aces at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are still undefeated after seven-games, but that won't be the case come Friday.
Minneola's defense heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Deerfield 48-0 at home. Given the Wildcats' advantage in MaxPreps' Kansas football rankings (they are ranked 20th, while the Spartans are ranked 92nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Minneola wouldn't let Deerfield keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Minneola can thank Jesse Smith and Julian Miramontes for forcing both of them. With that strong performance, Miramontes is now averaging an impressive 5.2 total tackles per game.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Bucklin). They claimed a resounding 80-0 win over Satanta on the road. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest victory of the season.
Bucklin can attribute much of their success to Kolson Cook, who rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns, and Miles Haskell, who rushed for 94 yards and two touchdowns. That's the most rushing yards Cook has posted since back in September of 2023. Aiden Haskell also helped with two touchdowns in total.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Bucklin was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 373 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Minneola pushed their record up to 7-0 with the win, which was their ninth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Bucklin, their record is now an identical 7-0.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Minneola has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 181.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Bucklin struggles in that department as they've been averaging 202.4. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Minneola against Bucklin in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, as the squad secured a 60-32 victory. Does Minneola have another victory up their sleeve, or will Bucklin turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
