Week Four High School Football Preview

The Portland Raiders travel to Fowlerville Friday night for their second CAAC conference game of the year.

The Raiders come in with a two win and one loss record, after a thrilling defeat over Williamston last week with only four seconds left in the game.

The Gladiators of Fowlerville have a one win and two loss record. They lost to Haslett 43-20 in week one, beat Charlotte 28-seven in week two, and lost to Ionia last week 50-27.

When asked about the Fowlerville game, Raider Head Coach John Novara said, “Fowlerville is always a well-coached, physical football team. We need to execute better and make less mistakes offensively. Defensively we are expecting them to throw the ball often, so we must play well in our secondary.”

After three weeks, senior running back Brock Gross leads the team in rushing with 290 net rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. Senior quarterback Austin Allison has rushed for 71 net yards and two rushing TDs himself, and passed for 278 yards and one TD. Senior running back Dean Battley has also contributed 86 rushing yards and two rushing TDs. Gavin Dennany leads the team in receiving with one TD and 132 yards.

For the Raider defense through three games, senior linebacker Devin Miller leads with 19 solo tackles and 16 assists. Battley has 13 solo and 6 assists.

When asked for his prediction on this game, Buck Geno from “ESPN 96.1’s Game of the Week” said, “Portland 48, Fowlerville 6. Portland defeated the playoff-bound Glads 33-0 last season. Fowlerville is off to a rough start at 1-2, while the Red Raiders are looking to get back on the winning track after a close loss to Lansing Sexton.”

The Shamrocks of St. Patrick’s look to remain unbeaten Friday night as they host Bellevue, who is also unbeaten.

The Shamrocks defeated Webberville last week 38-22.

The Broncos of Bellevue have put up an impressive 146 points for, while allowing only six points against in the first three games. They beat Webberville 40-6, Litchfield 60-0 and North Adams-Jerome 46-0.

For the Shamrocks after three games, sophomore running back Ned Smith leads in rushing with 322 yards and two TDs, followed by junior running back Paul Cook with 232 yards and three TDs. Junior QB Tanner Lawson has now thrown for 517 yards and 12 TDs, while rushing for 58 yards and two TDs himself. Paul Cook leads receiving with 171 yards and three TDs, followed by senior Will Simon who has 154 yards and four TDs.

On the defensive side, Shamrock senior defensive lineman Colin Cook leads the team with 21 solo tackles and 10 assists. Junior Paul Cook has 14 solo and 19 assists.

When asked for his prediction on this game, Buck Geno from “ESPN 96.1’s Game of the Week” said, “Portland St. Patrick's 40, Bellevue 30. The Shamrocks take on Bellevue in a non-conference affair on Friday. This is the first meeting of the schools in 8-man football. St. Pat's held the series edge 6-5 when both schools fielded 11-man teams. This is Bellevue's first year of 8-man football, and they've been impressive in giving up only 6 points in their first 3 games. Pat Russman's group boasts a powerful offense. They'll need to find some holes in the stout Bronco defense in order to move to 4-0.”