The Hamilton Huskies will travel to Gilbert on Friday to take on the Perry Pumas in what sets up to be an old-fashioned shootout in the desert.
    Both teams come into this game flexing 7-1 records with two of the most explosive offenses in the 6A division this year.
    Hamilton has won its last six games, including a 56-0 skunking of region foe Basha behind Tyler Shough’s 300 yards and five touchdowns through the air and Jawhar Jordan Jr.’s 220 yards and two TDs on the ground.
     The Pumas are back on track, coming off a 62-20 win over Brophy, thanks to Brock Purdy 340 yards and four TDs passing and 364 yards and four TDs on the ground.
      The two teams are certainly no strangers to scoring as Perry averages just over 55 points a game while Hamilton is averaging just over 44 ppg.
     “They’re premier region games now and they’re a lot of fun playing in,” Shough said. “We just have to keep doing what we’ve been doing like practicing having fun and just execute our game plan.”
    Opposite of Shough, Purdy is the man behind the majority of the Pumas scoring as he has accounted for 35 of Perry’s 58 touchdowns this season (30 passing, four rushing and one receiving).
     Purdy also leads the Pumas in rushing yards with 543 yards along with four TDs, ensuring that he is a dangerous dual-threat quarterback and even a bigger challenge for the Huskies’ defense.
    “They’ve got an unbelievably prolific offense and quarterback, so were just concentrating on figuring out a way to slow them down,” Hamilton coach Dick Baniszewski said.
     Hamilton’s offense will have the ammunition to fire back, led by Shough. The future Tar Heel is averaging almost 263 yards a game, with a total of 22 TDs and only two interceptions on the season.
     When Shough isn’t gashing the defense through the air, Jordan, a Syracuse commit, will be torching them on the ground. The Huskies shifty RB is averaging about 146 yards a game, with a total of 18 touchdowns on the ground.
     But the Pumas as well thrive on the dual threat offensive attack, as Perry is averaging 298 passing yards a game to go along with the 258 on the ground.
    “Well this is going to be our toughest game by far,” Jordan said. “We lost to them twice last year so we have to come out strong.”
    In a game that could come down to a turnover, a defensive stop or even who gets the ball last, every big play will be magnified.
    After the Pumas, Hamilton will look ahead to No. 2, Chandler (6-2), as the Huskies look to knock off the Wolves in what will be a marquee matchup with playoff implications. 
   Perry will look ahead to Basha (2-7).