Two teams heading in opposite directions prepare for a Friday night clash in Lincoln.  #9 (2-0) Omaha Creighton Prep (Last Game: 24-20 W at Omaha Central),, will trek down to Lincoln for a clash with the 0-2 Lincoln High Links (Last Game: 47-7 L at Grand Island).  Last year the Links handled the Junior Jays with ease, winning 42-21. This is what to watch for:

Lincoln High has a schedule that no team in Class A would want, playing 3 top 10 teams to start the season (they lost 63-6 to Bellevue West in their opener).  Despite two consecutive blowout losses, a couple of players have stepped up as team leaders.  

Links starting running back Tyrese Jones has 66 rushing yards and 35 kick return yards in his first two games, as well as the lone touchdown against Bellevue West.  

The other scorer for Lincoln High is Daron Givens, another running back who has 18 rushing yards and 18 kick return yards.  

Creighton Prep once again had their fans on the edge of their seats against Central, but managed to scrape out a 24-20 win over the Omaha Central Eagles.  Quarterback John Coniglio threw for 170 yards and 2 scores and went 14-17. The senior also had a monster game on the ground, leading the team in rushing with 16 carries for 106 yards.  

Despite the rest of the offense managing just 121 total yards, Coniglio did have help.  

Running back Vinny Cacioppo had 8 carries for 62 yards and a score.  The defense also stepped up late once again, allowing just 3 points in the second half.  While there were 321 yards given up, the Eagles couldn’t string those yards together and Prep won because of it.  

On paper, Prep’s defense may have an even easier time of it going up against a team that has 374 offensive yards all season.  

Currently, Creighton Prep is trending up while Lincoln High is trending the opposite way.  The Junior Jays’ solid offense and tremendous defense will face Lincoln High’s struggling offense and iffy defense (the Links have been outscored 110-13 in their first 2 games). 

My final prediction is 42-7 Creighton Prep.