The Creighton Bulldogs will venture away from home to face off against the North Central Knights at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Creighton will be strutting in after a win while North Central will be coming in after a loss.
Creighton took a loss when they played away from home last Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They put the hurt on Ainsworth with a sharp 80-56 victory. Considering Creighton has won three matchups by more than 23 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Haiden Horstmann continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 464 yards and seven touchdowns while picking up 11.6 yards per carry. He also put in work on the defensive side of the ball, forcing one fumble and making nine total tackles (2.0 for loss) in addition to snagging an interception. Another player making a difference was Dylon Nilson, who rushed for 79 yards and one score.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Creighton was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 556 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
On the other side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Creighton's defensive line and their four sacks. That dominant display was truly a team effort as four different players picked up one apiece.
Meanwhile, North Central played a tough contest on Friday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were beaten by St. Mary's 74-8. While losing is never fun, the Knights can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska football rankings (they are ranked 126th, while the Cardinals are ranked fourth).
Creighton's win ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 3-4. As for North Central, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-7.
Thursday's game might be decided in the trenches. Creighton has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 204.7 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for North Central, though, as they've been averaging only 65.7 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Everything came up roses for Creighton against North Central in their previous matchup back in October of 2024, as the team secured a 66-16 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bulldogs since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
