■ Who: Pahrump Valley (0-2) vs. SLAM Nevada (1-2).
■ When/where: 7 p.m. Friday/Trojan Field, Pahrump.
■ Series history: Pahrump Valley leads 1-0.
■ Last Pahrump Valley win: 32-14 in 2019.
■ Last SLAM Nevada win: n/a.
■ Outlook: The Bulls have yet to play a close game, recording a 27-7 win over Class 2A The Meadows and losing 51-0 to Bishop Gorman and 50-12 to Moapa Valley. The game against the Pirates gives some basis for comparison, although specific matchups make that risky business. Anyway, Moapa Valley averaged 8.5 yards per carry, piling up 282 rushing yards against SLAM, while the Trojans allowed — according to MaxPreps, anyway — 4.1 yards per carry and 122 total yards. So writing about the Trojans’ solid run defense is not just searching for positives in an 0-2 start. It is impossible to find any SLAM stats on the usual websites, but the Bulls feature just two seniors on a roster of 32. The Bulls first fielded a varsity football team in 2018, going 6-0 against an independent schedule and 3-7 as a 3A Sunrise team in 2019.
■ Did you know?: The MaxPreps rankings would suggest these teams are fairly comparable: the Trojans are ranked 47th in Nevada, while the Bulls are ranked 48th. Among Class 3A schools, the Trojans rank 13th and the Bulls 14th. For the record, Churchill County of Fallon is ranked No. 1 in 3A.
■ Coach Clayton says: “SLAM has some good size up front and some solid, athletic kids that we will have to manage. As long as we can cherish the football that is in our hands and take care of it, we will be able to control the clock and score some points and helo out our solid run defense for once.”