Rockford East hasn't had much luck against Harlem recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The E-Rabs will square off against the Huskies at 7:15 p.m. Rockford East has given up an average of 31 points per game this season, but Thursday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Rockford East's offense might be in the hot seat on Thursday considering what happened against Hononegah on Friday. They were outmatched by the Indians and fell 34-0. While losing is never fun, the E-Rabs can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Illinois football rankings (they are ranked 435th, while the Indians are ranked 199th).
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Harlem). They claimed a resounding 59-14 win over Freeport. Considering the Huskies have won five contests by more than 21 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Rockford East better keep an eye on La'Darrius Foster. He was instrumental in Harlem's win, rushing for 46 yards and two scores, while also picking up 50 receiving yards and one TD. Jai'Untae Jones-Williams was another key player, rushing for 68 yards and one touchdown on only six carries.
Harlem was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 283 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in October of 2024.
On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Harlem's defense and their 3.5 sacks. Noah Crandall refused to say out of the backfield, picking up 1.5 sacks all by himself. Brenyn Brickson was another major factor on D, picking up a sack and making ten total tackles.
Harlem's record now sits at 5-1. As for Rockford East, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-6.
Things could have been worse for Rockford East, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 33-14 loss to Harlem in their previous matchup back in October of 2024. Thankfully for the E-Rabs, Jahmani Muhammad (who rushed for 293 yards and one score while picking up 12.7 yards per carry) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
