 |
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Wayne Co. Cards will open district play at Russell Co. The Wayne County Cardinals, 3-2 on the season and coming off an open date on the schedule, open district play this Friday night at Russell County. The Lakers are 2-4 on the season and coming off an impressive 7-0 home win over Metcalfe County. The matchup marks the 28th meeting between the two rivals with Wayne County winning the last two in the series, including a 34-19 decision last October at Jewell Field. Russell County is Wayne County�s most common opponent in school history, with the Lakers claiming a 17-10 all-time advantage. The 2004 Lakers have already doubled last season�s effort in the win column, under the direction of second year head coach Vic Clark. �Russell County has a young team, but one that is very dangerous. They have around a 60-man roster, so their kids are buying into coach Clark�s system and that�s obvious just looking at their numbers. Russell County is a very scary opponent that certainly has our respect and focus,� said Cards head coach Shawn Thompson. Russell County opened the 2004 season with three straight losses, before exploding to a 54-32 win at Class 3A Taylor County. The Lakers only loss in the last three games occurred at home to Mercer County (31-16). The squad enters the district season off another high, knocking off Metcalfe County 7-0. �Russell County is playing with a real confidence level and that showed in their win last week,� said Thompson. The Laker�s offense is based out of the Triple-Option and relys on a strong running game. The unit averages 15.0 points per game and faces a Wayne County defense that allows 20.2 points per game. �They like to run the Triple-Option and are very effective, so defensively we must be sound and play our responsibilities. We must swarm the football, try to force some turnovers and play with a high level of intensity,� said Thompson. Wayne County�s offense enters the contest netting 266 rushing yards per game and totaling 349 yards overall per game, through five games. The Cards, coming off a 56 point effort against Knox Central, are led by the 984 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns of senior runningback Matt Goff. �Offensively we have to continue to build each week, on the positions. Matt is off to a great start, but we talk a lot about team effort and unity,� said Thompson. The Cards average 30.2 points per game and face a Russell County defense that plays the 4-4 and allows 24.1 per game. �Russell County likes to stop the run and last week they certainly were up to the job. Defensively they swarm the football well and are very aggressive,� said Thompson. The game marks the district opener for both teams. �We played our first five games to prepare and get better for district. We�ve had some success so far, but starting this Friday everyone is 0-0 and once again fighting for the playoffs. We must continue to work hard and focus, if we do that I believe good things will happen,� said Thompson. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. Friday night at Russell County�s Laker Field. �We�re certainly thankful for the crowds we�ve had at home and on the road. Hopefully we�ll have another big group to make the drive over. I know our kids and staff certainly appreciate the support,� said Thompson. Complete details on the game will be in next week�s Outlook. Add a comment |
|
|
@ 2004 The Wayne County Outlook For more information, see our online Privacy Policy. |