Week 7 football preview: Castle Rock at Ridgefield

When, where: 7 p.m. Friday at Ridgefieldl HS (Class 1A Trico League game).

Last meeting: Ridgefield won 31-14 on Oct. 15, 2010 in Castle Rock.

Last week: Ridgefield lost to Kalama 33-14; Castle Rock lost to La Center 12-7.

Castle Rock (3-3, 2-2): The Rockets struggled to move the ball against La Center, but took advantage of three turnovers to stay in the game. … One of those turnovers resulted in a 62-yard fumble return by Austin Gehring for Castle Rock’s lone TD.

Ridgefield (4-2, 2-2): Since league started, it’s been win-loss-win-loss for the Spudders. They’ll need to keep the trend going this week if they want to stay in the playoff hunt. … Last week was an all-around ugly game for the Spudders. Leading rusher Michael Knox, who has rushed for 593 yards this season, was held to 14 yards on 10 carries. … Ridgefield as a team completed just 1 of 10 passes for 36 yards and four interceptions. Three of those interceptions were returned for TDs, leading to a 33-0 halftime lead for Kalama.

Bottom line: Ridgefield needs to re-establish its ground attack against Castle Rock. But Ridgefield has done a good job of bouncing back from poor performances. Playing at home will help.

Columbian’s pick: Ridgefield.

Fans’ pick: Ridgefield (80 percent).