Gardendale lost against Mortimer Jordan back in September of 2023, and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Friday. The Gardendale Rockets lost to the Mortimer Jordan Blue Devils at home by a 34-20 margin. Despite 77 more yards than the Blue Devils, the Rockets couldn't convert that extra yardage to scores.
Despite the defeat, Gardendale saw an underclassman step up: Urijah Casey rushed for 143 yards and a touchdown. Casey's longest rush was for an incredible 70 yards. Gardendale also got a significant boost from Deacon Dyer, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 85 yards.
Even though they lost, Gardendale was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 256 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in October of 2023.
Mortimer Jordan's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Parker Reno, who rushed for 71 yards and two touchdowns, and also caught a touchdown. Reno is becoming a predictor of Mortimer Jordan's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is 2-1 (and 0-5 when he doesn't).
This is the second loss in a row for Gardendale and nudges their season record down to 4-4. As for Mortimer Jordan, their win ended a five-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 2-6.
Gardendale wasted no time getting back out on the field and has already played their next matchup, a 40-14 victory against Woodlawn on the 18th. As for Mortimer Jordan, they will have some time to savor their win since their next game is a little ways off: they'll take on Jackson-Olin at 7:00 p.m. on October 24th. Jackson-Olin is coming into the contest with three straight losses on the road, meaning Mortimer Jordan will have to defend against a squad hungry for a victory.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
