Football: Tigers ready to pounce on Wildcats
The Commerce Tigers (3-0) pulled away from the Banks County Leopards (1-2) in the fourth quarter on Friday to earn a hard fought victory in a rivalry that some have dubbed the “cat fight.” The Tigers now prepare to face yet another feline foe, the Rabun County Wildcats (2-0).
The region 8-AA Wildcats have thus far defeated out of state team, Hayesville, NC 20-6 and smashed Towns County last week, 45-7.
Commerce head coach Marvin Justice expects the Rabun offense to give the Tigers a similar look as their previous three opponents.
“For the fourth week in a row, we are going to see a spread offense,” said Justice. “They are usually always in shotgun and 4-wide. Defensively, the kids ought to be familiar and the preparation should be smooth.”
However, Justice pointed out that the Wildcat defensive strategy is a little less clear.
“They are a 4-3 defense,” he said. “We haven’t seen that yet, but we have seen an even front. Offensively we should be familiar with what they do – the only problem is, they haven’t played a 3-back offense yet. We don’t know exactly how they are going to adjust to our formations. We haven’t had a chance to see them play someone with an offense similar to ours, so there is a little bit of guesswork involved.”
Justice noted that the coaching staff is taking every step possible to be prepared for what the Rabun defense might throw at them – including putting in some late nights watching game film.
“The coaches and I stayed an hour later than usual last night because we were really trying to figure out what they were going to do – how they were going to defend us and what we need to work on.”
Tiger defensive back Jamir Walton added, “We have some things to correct in practice this week, but we are going to work hard and be ready for them on Friday.”
The matchup between the Wildcats and the Tigers is the first since 2007 when the Commerce routed Rabun 42-26. Historically, Commerce has dominated the series between the two respective teams, winning 20 of the 27 matchups.
“The last two weeks we have came out and not played very well in the first half, said Justice. “We are going to try some different things this upcoming week – as far as preparation and approach to the game goes.”
The Tigers will look to extend their lead in the series when they host the Wildcats this Friday at Ray Lamb Stadium at 8:00 p.m.
Banks County Recap
The Tigers struck first, when Terrick Ramsey got loose on an 80-yard on his first touch of the game, putting the Commerce up 7-0 in the first quarter.
Banks answered early in the second when Leopard halfback Wes Faulkner broke his own long run of 65 yards, tying the game at 7-7.
The first half was a defensive struggle for both teams, ending with a tie score of 7-7.
“We came out at halftime and we knew what we had to do,” said senior Tiger Dillion Haggard. “We knew we were going to really have to play hard for the next 24 minutes.”
The Tigers certainly did just that.
Tiger quarterback Drew Whitfield rushed for a 13-yard Tiger touchdown late in the third quarter after capitalizing on an interception by Commerce defensive back, Jamir Walton.
Banks rebounded quickly with Faulkner rushing for another touchdown on the ensuing drive, tying the game at 14-14.
The Tigers quickly jumped out in front once again when Quay Little ran for a 13-yard touchdown, putting the Tigers up a score.
On the ensuing kick-off, a Banks County return man coughed up the ball and Commerce recovered in it’s own red zone.
Whitfield took it in for three yards on the ground to put the Tigers up 28-14 with 5:19 left to go in the game.
The Leopards put together a strong last-ditch drive down to the Commerce 30-yard line, but fell short when Walton tipped a Hubbard pass and Commerce defensive back, Baron Mather snatched it out of the air for an interception.
The Tigers ran the clock out on the next drive sealing a Commerce victory and a 3-0 record.
“We haven’t been playing very inspiring football in the first half,” said Justice. “There haven’t been any magical adjustments. We’ve made some - the main thing being that we’ve simplified our game plan at halftime, but the motivation inspires us to play a little bit harder and with more enthusiasm.”
The Tiger offense had over 300 yards total offense for the third straight week, while limiting the Leopards to only 185.
“We’ve been real pleased with our running game,” added Justice. “Terrick (Ramsey) has been playing well and we can attribute much of it to the offensive line. The running backs have been blocking well too.”
Justice also noted strong performances on offense by Clay Pritchett, Chance McClure, Drew Whitfield, Quay Little, Jamir Walton and Jamal Browner.
Justice is also very pleased with the way the Tiger defense has been playing.
“The defense has been doing a great job of keeping people out of the in zone,” he said. “We have seen a bend but don’t break mentality. Teams may get down into the red zone, but we always seem to bow up and play with a lot of spirit and pride.”
Thus far, the Tiger defense has allowed only 14 points per game and only one second half score in all three victories.
“We’ve played three games and the most points they’ve given up in a game is 14,” added Justice. “If we can keep that up all season, I think we are going to be in real good shape.”
Commerce head coach Marvin Justice expects the Rabun offense to give the Tigers a similar look as their previous three opponents.
“For the fourth week in a row, we are going to see a spread offense,” said Justice. “They are usually always in shotgun and 4-wide. Defensively, the kids ought to be familiar and the preparation should be smooth.”
However, Justice pointed out that the Wildcat defensive strategy is a little less clear.
“They are a 4-3 defense,” he said. “We haven’t seen that yet, but we have seen an even front. Offensively we should be familiar with what they do – the only problem is, they haven’t played a 3-back offense yet. We don’t know exactly how they are going to adjust to our formations. We haven’t had a chance to see them play someone with an offense similar to ours, so there is a little bit of guesswork involved.”
Justice noted that the coaching staff is taking every step possible to be prepared for what the Rabun defense might throw at them – including putting in some late nights watching game film.
“The coaches and I stayed an hour later than usual last night because we were really trying to figure out what they were going to do – how they were going to defend us and what we need to work on.”
Tiger defensive back Jamir Walton added, “We have some things to correct in practice this week, but we are going to work hard and be ready for them on Friday.”
The matchup between the Wildcats and the Tigers is the first since 2007 when the Commerce routed Rabun 42-26. Historically, Commerce has dominated the series between the two respective teams, winning 20 of the 27 matchups.
“The last two weeks we have came out and not played very well in the first half, said Justice. “We are going to try some different things this upcoming week – as far as preparation and approach to the game goes.”
The Tigers will look to extend their lead in the series when they host the Wildcats this Friday at Ray Lamb Stadium at 8:00 p.m.
Banks County Recap
The Tigers struck first, when Terrick Ramsey got loose on an 80-yard on his first touch of the game, putting the Commerce up 7-0 in the first quarter.
Banks answered early in the second when Leopard halfback Wes Faulkner broke his own long run of 65 yards, tying the game at 7-7.
The first half was a defensive struggle for both teams, ending with a tie score of 7-7.
“We came out at halftime and we knew what we had to do,” said senior Tiger Dillion Haggard. “We knew we were going to really have to play hard for the next 24 minutes.”
The Tigers certainly did just that.
Tiger quarterback Drew Whitfield rushed for a 13-yard Tiger touchdown late in the third quarter after capitalizing on an interception by Commerce defensive back, Jamir Walton.
Banks rebounded quickly with Faulkner rushing for another touchdown on the ensuing drive, tying the game at 14-14.
The Tigers quickly jumped out in front once again when Quay Little ran for a 13-yard touchdown, putting the Tigers up a score.
On the ensuing kick-off, a Banks County return man coughed up the ball and Commerce recovered in it’s own red zone.
Whitfield took it in for three yards on the ground to put the Tigers up 28-14 with 5:19 left to go in the game.
The Leopards put together a strong last-ditch drive down to the Commerce 30-yard line, but fell short when Walton tipped a Hubbard pass and Commerce defensive back, Baron Mather snatched it out of the air for an interception.
The Tigers ran the clock out on the next drive sealing a Commerce victory and a 3-0 record.
“We haven’t been playing very inspiring football in the first half,” said Justice. “There haven’t been any magical adjustments. We’ve made some - the main thing being that we’ve simplified our game plan at halftime, but the motivation inspires us to play a little bit harder and with more enthusiasm.”
The Tiger offense had over 300 yards total offense for the third straight week, while limiting the Leopards to only 185.
“We’ve been real pleased with our running game,” added Justice. “Terrick (Ramsey) has been playing well and we can attribute much of it to the offensive line. The running backs have been blocking well too.”
Justice also noted strong performances on offense by Clay Pritchett, Chance McClure, Drew Whitfield, Quay Little, Jamir Walton and Jamal Browner.
Justice is also very pleased with the way the Tiger defense has been playing.
“The defense has been doing a great job of keeping people out of the in zone,” he said. “We have seen a bend but don’t break mentality. Teams may get down into the red zone, but we always seem to bow up and play with a lot of spirit and pride.”
Thus far, the Tiger defense has allowed only 14 points per game and only one second half score in all three victories.
“We’ve played three games and the most points they’ve given up in a game is 14,” added Justice. “If we can keep that up all season, I think we are going to be in real good shape.”
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