Mancos has been away from home for two games now, but on Friday they'll finally make their return. They will host the Norwood Mavericks at 7:00 p.m. One thing working in Mancos' favor is that they have posted at least 31 points in their last five matchups.
Mancos is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Colorado's top teams: Sanford, who was ranked 16th in their home state at the time (Mancos was ranked fifth). Mancos strolled past Sanford with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 34-20.
Mancos got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Brandon Vannest out in front who rushed for 149 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.8 yards per carry, and also threw for 114 yards and two touchdowns on only nine passes. With that strong performance, Vannest is now averaging an impressive 101.1 rushing yards per game. Jonah H Ritter was another key rusher, rushing for 128 yards and a touchdown on only seven carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Mancos was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 364 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in November of 2023.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Norwood). They really took it to Sargent for the full four quarters, racking up a 52-16 victory at home. With that win, the Mavericks brought their scoring average up to 28.1 points per game.
On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Norwood's defense and their four sacks. Sargent's QB won't forget Coulter Shumway anytime soon given he sacked him twice. Shumway 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.
Mancos pushed their record up to 6-1 with the victory, which was their sixth straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Norwood, their win bumped their record up to 3-4.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Mancos has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 263.3 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Norwood struggles in that department as they've been averaging 205.9. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Mancos against Norwood when the teams last played back in October of 2023, as the team secured a 64-0 victory. Does Mancos have another victory up their sleeve, or will Norwood turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
