The562’s football coverage for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Long Beach Poly alums Wendell “WoWo” Moe, Jr. & Tyson Ruffins.
The562’s coverage of Millikan Athletics for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Brian Ramsey and TLD Law.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
The Millikan Rams are back at home for another Moore League contest on Friday night at 7 p.m., welcoming in the Wilson Bruins, who are fresh off a bye week.
Millikan (1-4, 1-0) soundly defeated Cabrillo 63-0 in their league opener last Friday, getting a freshman state record nine touchdown passes from Jonah Tuaniga. He’ll be making just his third varsity start against the Bruins, who’ve had an extra week to prepare for Millikan’s dangerous passing attack.
Wilson has some key playmakers in the secondary like Thomas Jones and Jemel Grigsby, but the depth of Millikan’s receiving corps presents a challenge for any defense. The Rams have five players with at least 150 receiving yards and multiple TD catches on the season, led by seniors Jude Nelson (36 catches, 517 yards, 7 TDs) and Landon Ross (28 catches, 516 yards, 4 TDs).
On the other side, Wilson (3-1, 0-0) is looking to bounce back from its first loss of the season two weeks ago against Dana Hills. The Bruins had a bye week to work on things, and will hope to get their offense back in rhythm. Turnovers and costly penalties hurt the Bruins in their last contest, and they’ll need to play a much cleaner game if they want to knock off the Rams.
Senior QB Mack Cooper has averaged nearly 188 passing yards per game this season, and has 9 TDs to just one interception. Jones is his preferred target on the outside with over 400 receiving yards and 5 TDs, and senior RB Kori Scott has averaged 113 yards and a TD per game this season.
A balanced attack will be crucial to keep Millikan’s pass rush off of Cooper and allow him time to read the defense and make plays downfield.
Millikan has won five straight meetings against the Bruins, with Wilson’s last victory coming back in 2019. Last season’s result was a 45-10 win for the Rams on their way to a Moore League title.
