After two games on the road, Monticello is heading back home. They will welcome the Dove Creek Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Last Friday, Monticello lost to Norwood on the road by a 32-14 margin. The game marked the Buckaroo's lowest-scoring matchup so far this season.
Meanwhile, Dove Creek is ranked highly in their home state and last Saturday they took on another highly ranked team in the form of Escalante. Dove Creek breezed by Escalante on the road to the tune of 50-6. The Bulldogs' victory was nothing new given the team hasn't lost yet this season.
Dove Creek's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Josh Kibel, who rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns on only 11 carries, and also threw for 69 yards and two touchdowns. Teagan Larimore was another key back, rushing for 82 yards and a touchdown on only ten carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Dove Creek was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 249 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 178 rushing yards in seven consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Dove Creek's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Nicholas Aragon and Sheldon Gardner. Another thorn in Escalante's side was Myles Ives, who picked up two sacks and made eight total tackles (5.0 for loss).
Monticello's defeat dropped their record down to 3-2. As for Dove Creek, their win bumped their record up to 3-0.
Monticello was taken down by Dove Creek 58-18 when the teams last played back in September of 2023. Thankfully for Monticello, Gage Buffington (who rushed for 217 yards and three touchdowns on only 15 carries, and also picked up 83 receiving yards and a touchdown) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
