The Riverside Bulldogs football team will play host to an exciting Friday night match-up against the ACGC Chargers. The Bulldogs come in with a 3-1 record after defeating IKM-Manning 28-20 on the road last week. Head Coach Darrell Frain says his team’s success has come from playing as a unit.

One of the most lethal parts of Riverside’s game is the ground attack. Though four games, the Bulldogs have amassed 1197 yards on the ground, with 803 of those yards coming from junior Jaxon Gordon. Halfway through the regular season, Gordon leads the Western Iowa Conference in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, and offensive touchdowns while he ranks second in all-purpose yards. Frain contributes Gordon’s willingness to have the ball in his hands as the reason for his success.

On defense, it’s been the senior leaders that have contributed to Riverside’s efforts. Senior Kellen Oliver is tied for the WIC lead in interceptions, while AC Roller is ranked seventh in the WIC with 31 total tackles and shares the team lead in tackles for loss with Jett Rose at 5.5. When talking about Roller and Rose, Frain said they have slightly different styles that usually end up with the same result.

The Bulldogs defense will have a tough challenge ahead with the 4-0 Chargers, who are seeking their second straight undefeated season. Expect a run-heavy attack as ACGC has three players that are averaging 100 yards or more per game on the ground. In a game like this Frain knows that keeping the Chargers behind schedule and forcing a turnover or two will be critical.

You can catch all the action Friday night on KJAN with pre-game coverage starting at 6:30 pm with kickoff at 7 pm.