The Upperman Bees have momentum after two straight wins but are preparing for a challenge in rival Livingston Academy.
The Bees and Wildcats had a classic game in 2019, with the Wildcats earning a 10-7 win, but both teams look different in 2020.
“The big thing about Livingston is they’re always problematic because they just naturally have big, strong kids up front,” said UHS head coach Adam Caine. “When you like to run the football, that can make it difficult at times. They play extremely hard. The effort those kids play with is tremendous. I think they’re… forging their own identity.”
The Bees (2-1, 1-0) are coming off a 42-14 win over Smith County. Upperman rushed for over 300 yards for the second consecutive week. This week they will face a strong Livingston Academy (2-1, 1-0) front-seven.
“They’re going to pose a lot of challenges,” said Caine. “It’ll be a big challenge for our guys. We’re going to figure out a lot of different ways to get first downs and keep the football. We dealt with some pretty horrendous field positions last week, so hopefully it’ll be a little bit better and we can get the ball to our playmakers on the outside.”
Caine went on to say he has been pleased with his offensive line’s improvement.
“I’m pleased with my guys, they’ve improved steadily during the course of a strange year, so I hope we can improve this week,” said Caine. “I hope we’re up for the challenge.”
The Wildcats have had an unconventional start to the season. Their week one win over Westmoreland came in rainy conditions. Their week two loss came against 6A Cookeville in which they lost starting quarterback Parker Coleman for the season due to an injury. Their week three win over Cumberland County came on a field that was nearly unplayable.
Caine said the circumstances can present challenges when trying to analyze the LA film.
“The one thing I know about Livingston is they’ve got plenty of players,” said Caine. “They’re going to find some guys who can make plays with the ball in the hands.”
“I have had to, kind of, pick and choose what I want to practice against because of the circumstances they’re playing under. You’d like to base it all on last week… but that was a virtually unplayable field. It’s a tremendous task for us.”
The Bees will look for a repeat performance out of junior Ty Dutchess. Dutchess rushed for 249 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries against Smith County. Dutchess has seen time at running back and quarterback along with senior Thomas Ensor. Caine said he expects to use both players at QB again this week.
“I think we’ll continue to do it how we’ve been doing it,” said Caine. “I think it keeps us a little bit fresher. It enables us to get the ball to different people. Last week was a special performance, so I’m pretty sure (Dutchess) will handle the ball some for us this week.”
Kickoff between the Wildcats and Bees is set for 7 p.m. Friday night in Livingston.