LAST MEETING — The teams have not met recently. Perry is off to a rare 2-0 start and owns wins of 28-21 over North Polk and of 21-14 over Nevada. Both games were at Dewey Field, with the first decided with 80 seconds remaining and the second on the last play of the game. Ballard has had no such drama, whipping host Carlisle, 47-21, before topping host ADM, 39-25.
ABOUT THE BLUEJAYS — Perry has shown a penchant for the dramatic. The team has scored five offensive touchdowns — two in the first six minutes of the season, one in the third quarter and two in the fourth quarter but has struggled to cash in on drives in the middle of both contests. The defense has scored once and special teams once.
Perry is 11-23-1 for 126 yards and two scores through the air while rushing 64 times for 239 yards and three TDs. Quarterback Adan Medina has both 126 yards passing and 126 yards rushing — on 35 carries — and has two rushing TDs.
Mark Campos missed the Nevada game but remains second on the team with 58 yards and a score on 14 runs, with Donald Chavez carrying 13 times for 50 yards.
Reece Dunlap has three catches for 50 yards and Campos three for 32, with Janier Puente and Brandon Kenyon each grabbing short TD tosses.
Dunlap has a 90-yard kick return for a score and Chavez a 35-yard pick-six, with Medina’s 15.5 tackles leading the defense. Puente (14.5) Chavez (13), Grand Eklund (12.5) and Tyle Soll (11.5) figure into a unit that has three interceptions and three fumble recoveries in two games. Puente has six sacks to his credit and Soll two.
ABOUT THE BOMBERS — Ballard will be a considerable step up, talent-wise, for Perry. The Bombers are 18-26-1 for 280 yards and five TDs through the air and have rushed 92 times for 708 yards and eight TDs.
Austin Edwards has just three catches, but all are for TDs and have totaled 132 yards. Trey Drummond is quarterback Max Stoltz’s favorite target, having pulled in seven passes for 54 yards.
Hunter Wright has carried 47 times for 387 yards and five touchdowns to lead the ground attack, with Stoltz accounting for 184 yards and two scores on 28 carries.
Ballard’s defense has fallen on three fumbles and made one interception. Cade Wilson’s 19 tackles leads the unit, with Seth Moore having made 17.5 stops this season.
