Week 5 Football Preview: Tigers, Golden Eagles want 2nd win of season
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
GREENFIELD — Either the McClain Tigers or the Madison-Plains Golden Eagles will leave the MP football field this Friday with their second win of the season.
With Week 5 taking place this week, the season hasn't gone as planned for either South Central Ohio League school as both are 1-3 overall and both are 0-1 in the SCOL.
Last week, the Tigers were dominated by the London Red Raiders, 49-0, and the Golden Eagles were defeated by the Washington Blue Lions, 42-12.
This game will have extra motivation for the Golden Eagles as they are celebrating homecoming.
The Tigers are looking to spoil the party but will be going into the game without their best weapons in seniors Camron Cooper and Preston Wagner, who are injured.
MP will enter the game possibly without junior starting quarterback Ryne Davis (55 yards last week on 13 carries), who was injured in last week's loss to the Blue Lions at Gardner Park.
Last week against the Blue Lions, the MP offense gained 294 yards of offense with 45 rushes for 187 yards and 107 yards of passing. The defense of MP allowed 401 yards of offense, 248 yards coming from the rush.
The Tigers allowed 473 yards of offense, including a season-high 453 yards of rushing by the Red Raiders. MHS tallied 138 offensive yards. For the season, the Tigers have 488 yards of total offense.
Either way, both teams will be wanting that second win of the season.
"They (MP) do some things that can challenge a team," MHS head coach Randy Closson said. "Their option-read offense, if run well, can cause problems.
"Their quarterback, who I heard may or may not be playing this week, is a good athlete, and that situation adds another dimension in preparation for their offense. Now we have to be prepared for another quarterback, plus look at if they will change up their offense any this week if he is unable to play."
Another player that Closson said stood out is junior running back Stephen Lemieux, along with the Golden Eagle defensive line. Lemieux last week had 52 yards rushing on 15 carries.
"Their team plays hard, and their running back is talented," he said. "Their defensive line is real aggressive, and they can cause problems to some blocking schemes."
After their loss to the Red Raiders, Closson said it was business as usual this week.
"We came back home and got back to work," Closson said about how his team has rebounded this week. "We don't dwell on the past, and we have to find ways to get better. We have a lot of young guys taking the field for the first time, so they are taking their lumps on the fly. Hopefully this experience will not only make them better football players, but help them grow as people."
Headed into this game, there is no secret the Tigers need to improve on their offensive line play as they have been held to 27 points in four games this season, being shut out twice in that span of games.
"We must improve our offensive line play and start scoring points," Closson said. "If we can improve on that part of our team, that gives us a better chance of winning games. Until our offensive line play gets squared away, there isn't much our backfield can do if they are getting hit as soon as they get the ball."
MHS kicks off with the Golden Eagles at 7:30 p.m.
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With Week 5 taking place this week, the season hasn't gone as planned for either South Central Ohio League school as both are 1-3 overall and both are 0-1 in the SCOL.
Last week, the Tigers were dominated by the London Red Raiders, 49-0, and the Golden Eagles were defeated by the Washington Blue Lions, 42-12.
This game will have extra motivation for the Golden Eagles as they are celebrating homecoming.
The Tigers are looking to spoil the party but will be going into the game without their best weapons in seniors Camron Cooper and Preston Wagner, who are injured.
MP will enter the game possibly without junior starting quarterback Ryne Davis (55 yards last week on 13 carries), who was injured in last week's loss to the Blue Lions at Gardner Park.
Last week against the Blue Lions, the MP offense gained 294 yards of offense with 45 rushes for 187 yards and 107 yards of passing. The defense of MP allowed 401 yards of offense, 248 yards coming from the rush.
The Tigers allowed 473 yards of offense, including a season-high 453 yards of rushing by the Red Raiders. MHS tallied 138 offensive yards. For the season, the Tigers have 488 yards of total offense.
Either way, both teams will be wanting that second win of the season.
"They (MP) do some things that can challenge a team," MHS head coach Randy Closson said. "Their option-read offense, if run well, can cause problems.
"Their quarterback, who I heard may or may not be playing this week, is a good athlete, and that situation adds another dimension in preparation for their offense. Now we have to be prepared for another quarterback, plus look at if they will change up their offense any this week if he is unable to play."
Another player that Closson said stood out is junior running back Stephen Lemieux, along with the Golden Eagle defensive line. Lemieux last week had 52 yards rushing on 15 carries.
"Their team plays hard, and their running back is talented," he said. "Their defensive line is real aggressive, and they can cause problems to some blocking schemes."
After their loss to the Red Raiders, Closson said it was business as usual this week.
"We came back home and got back to work," Closson said about how his team has rebounded this week. "We don't dwell on the past, and we have to find ways to get better. We have a lot of young guys taking the field for the first time, so they are taking their lumps on the fly. Hopefully this experience will not only make them better football players, but help them grow as people."
Headed into this game, there is no secret the Tigers need to improve on their offensive line play as they have been held to 27 points in four games this season, being shut out twice in that span of games.
"We must improve our offensive line play and start scoring points," Closson said. "If we can improve on that part of our team, that gives us a better chance of winning games. Until our offensive line play gets squared away, there isn't much our backfield can do if they are getting hit as soon as they get the ball."
MHS kicks off with the Golden Eagles at 7:30 p.m.
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