The pollsters (a statewide panel of prep sports writers) don’t see much of a difference when assessing southern Minnesota small-school powers Cannon Falls and Rochester Lourdes. In fact, the teams came in tied for No. 3 in Class 3A with 25 points in the latest poll, making for a juicy subplot to Friday’s showdown.
Rochester Lourdes (2-0, 0-0) is coming off a 42-0 pounding of Zumbrota-Mazeepa on Oct. 15 in which senior quarterback Nolan Jurgenson ran for four touchdowns among his eight carries. In all, the Eagles ran for 287 yards on 34 attempts, a robust 8.44 yards per carry. Abe Gapinski rumbled for 82 yards on five carries, including a 73-yard scoring run.
Cannon Falls (3-0, 1-0), one of the few teams to play in the opening week (beating Pine Island 27-18 on Oct. 3), has averaged 52.5 points in its last two victories. The Bombers, who made the Class 3A state quarterfinals last season, ran for a whopping 545 yards in last Friday’s 56-20 rout of Lake City, with 6-foot-2 senior Marcus Banks’ 105 yards and two TDs leading the way.