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Football Long Beach Poly Millikan

High School Football Preview: Long Beach Poly vs. Millikan

Senior Night for Long Beach Poly will have a little extra juice this season when the Jackrabbits host Millikan at Cabrillo for a 7 p.m. kickoff. Without a playoff game to look forward to, this game will be it for the seniors on both sides, and you can bet Poly’s seniors will be extra motivated after not being able to find a willing opponent last week. The Jackrabbits are also expected to play in their gray Jordan Brand uniforms for the first time this season after unveiling them last year against Wilson.

Both Poly and Millikan enter the night 3-0 in Moore League play, but the Jackrabbits sport a 4-0 overall record while the Rams are 3-2 with a pair of big losses to strong non-league opponents.

Millikan played maybe its most complete game of the season in last week’s thrilling 28-21 win over Wilson. Quarterback Peter Kim tossed four TD passes, with three of them going to Arizona-bound junior Tacario Davis and one more to standout freshman Ryan Pellum. This will be a tough matchup for the Rams up front, especially without top defensive lineman Gavin Broderick, who was injured late in the Wilson game.

That could open up the ground game for the running back tandem of Jaden Bridges and Devin Samples, running behind Poly’s massive and skilled offensive line. But also expect the Jackrabbits to get more of their seniors involved. That could mean quarterback Shea Kuykendall spreading it to a senior-laden receiving corps of Keyonta Lanier, Jordan Riles, Kyren Racheal, Nasir Magee and others.

The Jackrabbits won last year’s meeting with the Rams 38-3, but Poly has not allowed any points to a Moore League opponent so far this season. Will the Millikan playmakers find pay dirt against the vaunted Poly defense or will the Jackrabbits close out an impressive season with another shutout?

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Tyler Hendrickson
Tyler Hendrickson was born and raised in Long Beach, and started covering sports in his hometown in 2010. After five years as a sportswriter, Tyler joined the athletic department at Long Beach State University in 2015. He spent more than four years in the athletic communications department, working primarily with the Dirtbags baseball program. Tyler also co-authored of The History of Long Beach Poly: Scholars & Champions.
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