CougarDave Corner Blacksburg Preview by CougarDave
Hello
again Cougar Fans, and welcome back to another week here at cougarfootball.net. I
guess the best way to start this weeks article is to go ahead and get into the
questions we all want to know the answers to. This past week was a
hard one to understand. Pulaski County came into its Homecoming Game 5-0,
after defeating some very good teams. Hidden Valley came in 4-1, with
hopes of continuing on its path to building its program up. So how, with
Pulaski winning its games with such physical play and aggressive defensive
schemes, was Hidden Valley able to come into the Cougar Den and beat the
Cougars so convincingly? The
Titans came in with a good game plan. On offense, they exploited some
areas of the Pulaski defense that have been exposed in earlier games as having
weaknesses. They used short passes and quick outs to get the ball to their
receivers. On the defensive side of the ball, the smaller Titans were able
to use there quickness to cut off ball carriers and get into the backfield
before the Cougars could get key blocks set up. Pulaski only ended up
crossing the 50 yard line two times during the game. The Titans had
the best game of its young history, and they deserve to be congratulated.
But what about Pulaski County High School? The
Pulaski County team on the field this past Friday was the exact same team that
defeated William Fleming in a come from behind win. It was the same team
that soundly defeated AAA Franklin County. It was also the same team that
won an overtime victory against AAA E.C. Glass, with a good number of its
starters out of action, injured either in a previous game or in this game.
This group of young men had the ability to defeat the Titans, but they didn't.
So the question is this.....what do they do now? The
Cougars need to take this game as a wake up call. In my opinion, Pulaski
came out flat and never got into its game against the Titans. Maybe it was
"ring rust" coming off the bye week, maybe it was a lack of focus and
looking ahead to what some had already decided would be a meeting of the
undefeateds in the last game of the season. Whatever it was, Pulaski
County is going to have to let it be a lesson learned and move on. This
coming week Pulaski County travels to the small and parking hindered confines of
Blacksburg to take on the Bruins. After becoming last years first ever
River Ridge District Champions, Blacksburg enters the contest with a disappointing
1-5 record, with a win over Single A Giles High School as their only win of the
season. The Bruins lead this series though, two games to one, winning the
last two contests in a row in pretty dominating fashion. The Bruins are
hurting as a team right now, suffering the loss of several key players in their
game against Northside High School two weeks ago. In
case nobody else wants to say it, let me. ATTENTION
COUGAR FOOTBALL PLAYERS, DO NOT TAKE THIS TEAM LIGHTLY!!!! With
the season the Bruins are currently having, there just isn't a lot they can hope
for in the way of success. There is one thing that would be considered a
positive though, and that is the chance to end either Pulaski or Salem's chances
at post-season play. A loss to the Bruins would almost certainly mean that
Pulaski County would be putting up its pad after ten games, AGAIN, for the third
year in a row. Actually, a loss in almost any of the remaining games would
almost be enough to close the post-season hopes down for the Cougars.
Something that certainly did help us was the fact that five out of the top ten
AA teams in the state lost this past Friday night, and Salem lost this past
Friday night to a strong and much improved Christiansburg team. Who
would have thought that one? Most likely the same people that expected
Hidden Valley to come into the Cougar Den and beat the Cougars. So
here we find ourselves, 5-1, and going into a three game road trip starting in
Blacksburg. Make no mistakes about it, this is a must win situation.
With the level of competition in our region and district, finishing anything
less than 9-1 could mean staying at home during the playoffs. This is
going to be a time when we find out what kind of heart our team has. It
would be easy to come out for these last few games and win one or two and call
it a successful season. It would be easy to come out and say, "Well,
we had some guys hurt and just couldn't replace them". That is not
the character of this team, and it is not the character of its coaches.
Pulaski County has always prided itself on being tough. IT'S TIME TO GET
TOUGH. To
the young men who wear the gold helmets and represent this County and its High
School, we only ask that you play with the ability we know you have. Win
or lose, we will be there to back you, but winning is SO much more fun!!!
Go out there this Friday night and play with the heart and determination that we
all know you have, and stay focused on the task at hand. Don't look ahead
to the next game, just play this one. Go down the road to Blacksburg
and show us what COUGAR PRIDE is all about!! This is your team, this is
your year, make it happen!! For
those of you in who aren't sure, let me assure you that there will be a good
crowd at Bill Brown Stadium this Friday night, and the earlier you get there the
better. Let get out there and let the kids know we're there for them.
Come out early, I don't think we'll have to worry about bee's this time, but
whatever you do just make it out there. Come on out and make some noise
for the Cougars!!
Series: Blacksburg
leads 2-1.
Region
III District Standings
Titans Run Down Cougars at Pulaski Homecoming
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