After each having a week off, the Downey Knights and the Folsom Bulldogs will shake off the rust and duke it out at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Downey is headed into the contest after thoroughly thrashing Enochs: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that the Knights blew the Eagles out of the water with a 57-7 final score. The final result isn't all that surprising considering the Knights' considerable advantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 201st, while the Eagles are ranked 709th).
Bryant Mendes
| 10/30/25 @ Enochs | 2 |
| 10/10/25 @ Pitman | 2 |
| 10/17/25 vs Modesto | 1 |
| 09/05/25 vs Merced | 1 |
Elias Haynes had another great game (as he tends to do), rushing for 182 yards and four scores on only eight carries, while also catching one touchdown. He has been hot recently, having posted two or more rushing touchdowns the last three times he's played. Bryant Mendes also helped with two TDs in total.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Downey was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 254 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 169 rushing yards in nine consecutive matchups.
Downey didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Francisco Diaz and Josiah Quintana. Downey got some further help from Mark Sanchez: he picked up two sacks, made seven total tackles (4.0 for loss), and defended one pass.
Meanwhile, Folsom waltzed into their game last Friday with six straight wins... but they left with seven. They took their contest with ease, bagging a 42-14 victory over the Grizzlies. With the Bulldogs ahead 28-7 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.
Downey better keep an eye on Ryder Lyons. He was instrumental in Folsom's win, throwing for 313 yards and four touchdowns while completing 83.3% of his passes, and also punching in one rushing score. The dominant performance also gave Lyons a new career-high in passer rating (163.2). Jameson Powell was another key player, picking up 134 receiving yards and a pair of scores.
Downey's win bumped their record up to 7-3. As for Folsom, their victory bumped their record up to 9-1.
Downey was taken down by Folsom 68-28 when the teams last played back in November of 2024. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Lyons, who threw for 513 yards and eight TDs while completing 74.4% of his passes. Now that the Knights know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
