The Joplin Eagles will face off against the Republic Tigers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Joplin 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 were the clear victor by a 45-21 margin over Glendale. The matchup marked the Eagles' most dominant win of the season so far.
Toryn Jones was a one-man wrecking crew for Joplin as he rushed for 202 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.8 yards per carry. The dominant performance gave Jones a new career-high in rushing yards. Another player making a difference was Davin Thomas, who gained 104 total yards and a touchdown.
Another reason for the win was Joplin's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for five sacks. In that department, Josiah Hazlewood was the leader with 2.5. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 5.5 total tackles per game. Another thorn in Glendale's side was Jariah Clark, who made 13 total tackles (2.0 for loss).
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Joplin was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 308 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Republic had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 30.5 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Chiefs 49-17 at home. The Tigers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three games by 26 points or more this season.
Preston McCracken was his usual excellent self, rushing for 134 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 7.4 yards per carry. The team also got some help courtesy of Izaiah Hull, who rushed for 137 yards on only ten carries.
Joplin's victory bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Republic, their win bumped their record up to an identical 3-1.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Joplin has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 161.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Republic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 297.8. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Joplin suffered a grim 38-15 defeat to Republic in their previous meeting back in September of 2023. Will Joplin have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more football content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
