A feisty cat fight will be fought when Tigers takes on the Quitman Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Mendenhall will be strutting in after a win while Quitman will be coming in after a defeat.
Mendenhall will roll into the game after a wild two-game stretch: they didn't score any points last Friday, then bounced right back against Morton on Friday. Mendenhall skirted past Morton 32-29. The Tigers' offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
A big part of Mendenhall's victory came down to the chemistry between Ty Davis and his top target Henry Funchess. Davis threw for 179 yards and three touchdowns while completing 80% of his passes while Funchess picked up 125 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Davis has become a key player for Mendenhall: the team is undefeated when he posts at least three passing touchdowns, but 0-3 otherwise.
Meanwhile, Quitman was just a hair shy of victory on Friday and fell 34-33 to Northeast Jones.
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Akylin Dear, who rushed for 190 yards and a touchdown while picking up 8.6 yards per carry, and also threw for 135 yards and two touchdowns while completing 77.8% of his passes. His rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his third straight game with at least 144 rushing yards dating back to last season. Another player making a difference was Jaleil Cameron, who gained 166 total yards and two touchdowns.
Mendenhall's win ended a four-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 3-3. As for Quitman, their loss dropped their record down to 4-3.
Mendenhall ended up a good deal behind Quitman in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, losing 54-35. Can Mendenhall avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
