The Merrill Vandals will venture away from home to take on the Montabella Mustangs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Merrill sitting on six straight wins and Montabella on seven.
On Friday, Merrill humbled Carson City-Crystal with a 48-7 victory. The final result isn't all that surprising considering the Vandals' considerable advantage in MaxPreps' Michigan football rankings (they are ranked 12th, while the Eagles are ranked 62nd).
Meanwhile, Montabella never let their opponents score on Friday. They breezed past Fulton to the tune of 40-0. Those 40 points were actually the fewest the Mustangs have put up all season, but given the result they're probably not too concerned.
Merrill better keep an eye on Austin Jensen. He was instrumental in Montabella's win, rushing for 182 yards and four touchdowns on only eight carries, while also picking up 37 receiving yards. Jensen's longest rush was for an incredible 80 yards. Gabriel Kauffman was another key player, rushing for 142 yards and one score on only seven carries.
Montabella was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 421 rushing yards. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their rushing yard total in four consecutive games.
Montabella didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Noah Carlson and Ethan Greene.
Merrill's record now sits at 6-1. As for Montabella, their record is now 7-0.
Merrill couldn't quite get it done against Montabella in their previous meeting back in September of 2024 as they fell 20-12. Can the Vandals avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
