WCMS football tests mettle in Murfreesboro
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Despite giving up a hefty size and speed advantage, head coach Matt Turner said his Pioneers improved as the day went on, eventually being out-scored by the Tigers four touchdowns to three.
“It went all right,” Turner said. “But Central’s got a good-looking team, with a lot of size and speed.
“We were a little flat coming out, with it being the second day of school and everything, but we held our own against them.”
The Tigers touchdowns came mainly, Turner said, as a result of poor tackling techniques by the Pioneer defensive unit.
“Arm-tackling was our biggest problem,” he noted. “We struggled in tackling drills on Monday, and we had a feeling Tuesday would be a lot of the same.
“But it was a good, hard lesson for them, and we drove it home on Wednesday with a long series of tackling drills.”
Mark Harvey and Caleb Northcutt caught TD passes from Bradley Steg, and Turner noted the backfield duo of tailback Jay Hutchings and fullback Taylor Bain ran well the entire day.
But the day’s biggest highlight, the second-year coach said, was at the end of the day, when the Pioneers’ first-team defense forced four fumbles from the Tigers’ No. 1 offense during a single 10-play possession.
Even the Pioneer junior varsity saw action, participating in several plays late in the scrimmage.
One Pioneer lineman suffered an injury during the scrimmage, as Billy Holland took a hard shot to the collarbone. The seventh-grader was taken to Middle Tennessee Medical Center for X-rays, which showed no break, but is scheduled for further tests later this week to rule out any hairline fractures.
WCMS will take part in a jamboree Saturday at DeKalb County Middle School, playing three 30-minute controlled games. They’ll face York Institute at 1:30, followed by a matchup against Wilson County and concluding with a game against Jackson County which is set for 3 p.m.