Story by Rusty Ellis
The Monterey Wildcats are 2-0 after taking down Cumberland County 21-7 in week two, and will open region play this Friday with the York Institute Dragons.
While his team won by a two-touchdown margin against the Jets, head coach Scott Hughes still sees plenty for his squad to clean up. Running back Mason Bowman fumbled the ball three times, and quarterback Matthew Montgomery threw an interception for a total of four turnovers.
Hughes says that’s a number his team cannot afford heading into the meat of the schedule.
“Offensively, we were really sloppy with the football,” Hughes said. “We’re not going to survive doing that. We’ve got some guys that are really talented, but until we fix ourselves, we’re not going to make it very far.”
As far as the turnovers are concerned, Hughes believes heightened awareness from his guys could help to alleviate that negative.
“A lot of our issues are just (centered on) being aware,” Hughes said. “Cumberland County did a good job of trying to punch the football out, and we didn’t do a good job of protecting it…it’s something that we are going to address daily, and we do already, but obviously it becomes even more of a point of emphasis after last week.”
The Wildcats open region play this week with the York Institute Dragons, a team known for a physical play-style that has often featured some Wing-T offense. It will also be the first meeting between the two teams since 2008, a game that ended in a 37-9 win for the Dragons.
“They’re super physical,” Hughes said. “Traditionally, they’re a super physical football team that very hands-on-you…it’s one of those games where we have to match that physicality. When you watch them on film, you see that. You see a tremendous brand of football that is physical up-front, and their skill guys are very physical.”
Ball security becomes even more important when a team like York comes along that likes to grind out long drives and dominate possession time, according to Hughes.
“It’s huge because they’re going to try to beat you into the ground physically,” Hughes said. “When you start wearing on people physically, that mental aspect really changes…you’ve got to be very efficient offensively, because you know you’re going to be limited with possessions. You’ve got to be efficient with what you do, and you can’t shoot yourself in the foot with penalties and turnovers, and those are some things we’ve done.”
The Wildcats will battle the Dragons in our Game of the Week this Friday, with kickoff set for 7 P.M. The game will be live-streamed on the Upper Cumberland Reporter’s Facebook page with Noah McKay and Justin Matheney on the call.