The Clairton Bears will be playing at home against the Laurel Spartan at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Clairton is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last eight games.
Clairton put the finishing touches on their sixth blowout victory of the season on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Jeannette 60-14 on the road. The contest was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 42-14.
Drahcir Jones continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 204 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 12.0 yards per carry. Jones was no stranger to the big play, turning on the jets for a run that went for 58 yards. Another player making a difference was Donte Wright, who gained 42 total yards and three touchdowns.
The team's defense also helped out by holding Jeannette to a paltry 174 yards. A big part of that defensive dominance came down to Clairton's ability to keep the quarterback under pressure: the team laid him out four times before it was all said and done. In fact, those sacks all came courtesy of defensive juggernaut Tahvaz Armstrong.
Laurel fell on hard times earlier this season, but after back-to-back wins it seems like their luck might finally be changing. They strolled past Shenango with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 22-7.
Laurel's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Kolton Carlson led the charge by picking up 99 receiving yards and a touchdown. The team also got some help courtesy of Luca Santini, who threw for 221 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 11.1 yards per attempt.
Clairton's win was their fourth straight on the road, which bumped their overall record up to 8-2. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 46.3 points per game. As for Laurel, they are on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four matchups, which provided a massive bump to their 4-6 record this season.
Friday's match might be decided on the ground as these two are both standouts in the run game. Clairton has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 239.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Laurel struggles in that department as they've been averaging 183.2 per game. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Clairton took their win against Laurel in their previous matchup back in September of 2019 by a conclusive 33-7. Does Clairton have another victory up their sleeve, or will Laurel turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
