CHANGE DOING RIVALS GOOD
Publication: THE
Published: 09/09/2005
Page: 1B
Headline: CHANGE DOING
Byline: NOT AVAILABLE
Tonight's prep football schedule
s Capital at Cabell
s Hurricane at George Washington
s
s Ripley at
s
s Poca at
s Sissonville at Winfield
s
s Scott at Chapmanville
s Greenbrier East at
s
s
s
s
s Richwood at
Saturday's game
s
rickryan@wvgazette.com
Both
Thus, the cross-river rivals have a lot on the line tonight for their annual
football showdown. Kickoff is set for 7:30 at Underwood Field in Nitro.
Both the Red Dragons and Wildcats are 2-0, and the winner not only figures to
rank highly in the Mountain State Athletic Conference title chase, but also in
the first batch of Class AAA playoff ratings, which are set to be released by
the SSAC next week.
A shift to a 3-5 defensive front appears to have
confused opponents. SA has allowed just 10 first downs, 245 net yards and two
offensive TDs total to
"It's a fairly new defense and sometimes it can cause confusion, I
guess," said Derek Christian, SA's second-year
coach. "We thought we had more of those type of
kids to play in that [alignment], so we went with it."
"I think where they're really solid," Tinsley said, "is
their linebacking corps since they went to the 3-5. I
think the reason they went to it was due to the really good linebackers they
have. More and more people are finding how difficult it is to run against the
3-5."
Running the ball has become the mainstay for Nitro's offense behind senior
tailback Josh Culbertson (600 yards, seven TDs), a
leading candidate for the Kennedy Award as the state's top player. Culbertson
averages 11.8 yards a carry and has broken off scoring runs of 78, 80 and 66
yards thus this season.
That's a big change from how the Wildcats used to move the ball under Tinsley
(think pass-happy quarterbacks like J.R. House and Derek Midkiff).
"You've got to go with what you have," Christian said of Nitro's
ground-oriented offense. "It's not like college where you get people to
fit your offense. You have to suit your offense according to who you have. But
it's not hard for Scott to do anything. I wouldn't be surprised at
anything."
Of course, folks haven't exactly been able to move the ball against the Red
Dragons through the air, either. In two games, SA foes are 3-of-19 passing for
20 yards with three interceptions.
"Theoretically, it should be easier to pass against [the 3-5 defense]
because you can't quite get the same pass rush," Tinsley said.
"I think if we're to have success [tonight], we'll have to throw the ball
some.
"They did a great job last year bottling Josh up and not allowing him to
break one [Culbertson gained 185 yards and one TD in Nitro's 10-7 win]. I think
we're going to have to throw the ball and spread them out."
Tinsley has allowed sophomore Michael Scott, his new QB, to slowly learn
the system. Scott has hit on 13-of-21 passes so far for 201 yards and one TD.
Chris Fulmer took a short out pass last week against George Washington and cut
back across the field for a 42-yard scoring play.
Eggleton, meanwhile, hasn't been called on to pass
too much for SA because the Dragons' defense has kept them in front. He's
completed 8-of-17 tries for 93 yards and one touchdown. Eggleton,
a converted receiver, has also run for another score.
"He got a year of experience at quarterback last year," Tinsley
said of Eggleton, "and now that obviously makes
them a better offense. They played so many young kids last year and they all
got experience. And then there's James. It seems like, in this conference, you
face a good quality tailback every week and James is no different. He's right
in there with the rest of them.
"We're going to have to play well on defense and see if we can hang on. I
don't expect anything but a close, low-scoring game."
To contact assistant sports editor Rick Ryan, use e-mail or call 348-5175.