The Locker Room August 26, 2009

Pulaski County hits the road on Friday as they head across the bridge in Fairlawn to renew a rivalry that has been brewing since the two teams last meeting in 1979.  It's the Cougars vs. the Bobcats, and if you want to have a place to sit, you better get there early.

Hello again Cougar fans, and welcome back to week one of the regular season and another year here at cougarfootball.net.  (At this point, would somebody please insert a great big Rick Flair "WOOOOOOOOO" for me right about now)  The pre-season action has finally come to an end, and it's time to strap those gold helmets on for real this Friday night.  This week the Cougars will face an opponent that believes they can beat Pulaski, and after seeing them perform at the Shelor Motor Mile Touchdown Classic, they certainly have a right to feel ready.  The Bobcats sent Lord Botetourt home with a loss under their belts, and then played well enough against Amherst to end the first half in a 0-0 tie, and then only fall to the Lancers by a final score of 6-0.  Yep.....the Bobcats are ready. 

This clock has been hanging in the Radford Bobcats King Fitness Center since the start of their off season.  Yep, they've been anxiously counting down the weeks, days, hours, minutes, and seconds until they get the chance to beat the Cougars.  The Bobcats have beaten Pulaski in soccer, basketball, and other sports last season, and they are hoping to carry that success over into football.  Radford is led by a very capable quarterback, and they have a couple of very capable running backs that could get the job done if our defense isn't aggressive and quick to the ball.  Defensively, the Bobcats are hungry and seem to move well, and they didn't seem to be afraid to hit at all.  There are several very good, tall, athletic players on the Bobcat squad, and they will all be looking to start their season off with an upset of Pulaski County. 

The Bobcats lead the series with Pulaski with one loss, two wins, and one tie.  They are one of the few teams in the state that can claim that.  In fact, of the 61 teams that the Cougars have played since the doors opened in 1974, only 13 teams can claim an edge over the Cougars in the win/loss column.  Of those teams, nine are teams that the Cougars have only played once.  Of the four remaining teams two hold a 2 wins/1 loss record against us.  Of the other two, E.C. Glass holds a 6-9-1 winning record against the Cougars, and then there is Radford.  Radford beat the Cougars 32-12 in 1976, but the Cougars were able to play to a 13-13 tie in 1977.  In 1978 the Bobcats shutout Pulaski with a 13-0 win, but then something happened at PCHS.  Enter Joel Hicks.....Pulaski wins in 1979 13-0 over the Bobcats. 

That was the last time these two teams have faced each other on the gridiron, even though people in both communities have begged for it all along.   Financially, it will be a big time money maker.  Expect an overflow crowd Friday night at Bobcat Stadium.  The travel costs will be at a minimum.  Concession sales should be up there pretty high also.....Cougar fans like to eat!   There will be parking available for Cougar fans that want to at the Kroger parking lot in front of the old K-Mart building.  The realtor in charge of the property was quick to give us that permission, but he did have two requests.  First, try to park away from Kroger so that you don't interfere with their customers, and second make sure you pick up any trash so we don't leave it a mess.  The school system is trying to work out some busses to shuttle people back and forth before and after the game, I'll put more out about that once we have the details.  Tickets will go on sale at the gate Friday for $5 each, and the gates will open at 5:30.  There was a rumor going around that only 7500 fans would be allowed in the gates, but Radford officials say that if you've got $5, you'll get a ticket.  I believe this will be a standing room only crowd, so if you want a seat you should plan on being there early. 

The Cougars have had a pretty successful preseason.  After shutting out Tazewell 28-0, the Cougars put 26 more unanswered points up on Saturday against Heritage.  Senior lineman Josh Lambert is still questionable for this Friday's game, but you have to put a kids safety and welfare over wanting him to play every time.  When he's healed up enough, he'll be back in the mix.  There are still several questions that need to be answered in the lineup, but Head Coach Jack Turner and his staff had made it very plain to their players since day one.  Every practice, every game, every snap of the ball is a competition.  Not just against the other team, but against each other.  The best player will play at each given position.  You have to earn your right to step out on the field on Friday nights. 

I don't think we would want it any other way. 

One more note of interest for those Cougar fans that don't live in the area anymore.  For the first time, you can now listen to Cougar football games on the web, as WPSK 107.1 FM will be streaming the games live each week.  This will be a great chance for our fans outside of and around the state to be able to listen in on the games each and every Friday night.  That same link will also allow those displaced Cougars to listen in on a little hometown music and news, as it streams the stations regular broadcasting 24 hours a day.  This is a great new thing for us, and if you like it please send an email to Scott Stevens from their site, www.wpsk107.com, and let them know how much you appreciate it. 

Pulaski County football fans....it's time to get out of the house and get behind these kids.  Our team is headed across the bridge in Radford for a game we've been asking for ever since 1979, and we need to support the team AND the game so that we can keep it going.  Let's make it such a huge success that neither school can afford NOT to have it.  Let's get out there and make some noise and let these kids in gold helmets know that we're behind them. 

IT'S FRIDAY NIGHT AND IT'S COUGAR FOOTBALL TIME!!! 

GO COUGARS!!!  BEAT THE BOBCATS!!!!