Region 8-AAAA is not an easy football road to travel.
The Winder-Barrow High School Bulldoggs will look for their first win of 2011 this Friday, but it won’t be easy. Defending region champion Clarke Central will visit W. Clair Harris Stadium for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.
“Their program is at the level where you want to be,” said WBHS coach David Wagner. “They are a perennial playoff team. They are always a region contender. They are a team who plays home playoff games. They are simply solid from top to bottom.”
Often Clarke Central’s skill players gain a good bit of attention, but Wagner said even the Gladiators’ linemen are strong athletes.
“From watching them on film this season, they are as good as advertised,” Wagner said. “They don’t run a ton of plays, but they get you to line up wrong and then take advantage of your mistake.”
Moving the football against this week’s foe may prove challenging as Wagner said Clarke Central has “11 players on defense who can flat out run.”
“They are solid in all aspects,” Wagner said. “We have to try and sustain drives in order to keep their offense off the field. Of course, that’s easier said than done against their defense.”
The Bulldoggs scored 35 points in their last outing against Madison County, but many of the touchdowns came as a result of quick strikes.
“We scored quickly,” Wagner said. “Of course, you don’t complain about that but you would like to have some scoring drives that are 8, 9 and 10 plays longs. We need to score early and gain some confidence. It will be key for us to limit their running game. Their backs may be the best in the region. Their fullback is already like a collegiate player in the way they use him.”
With no game last Friday, the Bulldoggs still turned in a solid week of preparation.
“We wanted to get everyone healthy,” Wagner said. “While we still worked on tackling and fundamentals, the goal was not to hit constantly. We got better without killing each other. We also tried to fine tune a few things.”
Even with this week’s quality foe, the WBHS coach does not want his team to lack confidence.
“You cannot allow yourself to get down or depressed,” Wagner said. “We have to compete and play the game. We want to win as bad as anyone in the state. We are taking the right steps.”
