Warriors get taste of Friday Night Lights
Posted on August 19th, 2008 | by admin |The Warrior football team got their first taste of Friday night under the lights when they traveled to Anderson County for the Orthopedic Surgeons of Oak Ridge Jamboree. WCHS played two of the five quarters of the event played at the alma mater of Warrior head coach, Josh Kerr, whose father is still the head coach at Anderson County. Although the event was a homecoming of sorts for the younger Kerr, the Warriors were not able to put any points on the board, but did show signs of improvement from previous preseason outings.
In the second quarter of the jamboree, the Warriors took on Campbell County, who outscored the Warriors in the 12-minute period 7-0.
The Cougars took the ball first and just steadily moved the ball down the field. They covered 70 yards in nine plays takng almost five minutes off the clock.
They opened with a 20-yard run on first down. The second play was a nine-yard pass. On the ensuing play, Seth Anderson found his way into the backfield and forced a fumble, but the Cougars recovered for a loss. They took care of the first down and more on a 23-yard pass play. The next four plays were runs before the touchdown, which was a five-yard pass. After a penalty on the extra point attempt backed them up, they still added the PAT to go up 7-0 with 7:18 to play in the quarter.
The Warriors got their first offensive possession and Sam Gribble went to work immediately. The senior running back found the hole the line opened and ripped off a 25 yard run into Campbell County territory. After a four-yard carry by Gribble, Seth McDonald picked up another first down with a seven-yard run. Two plays later, the Warriors kept the drive alive with a 10-yard completion from sophomore quarterback, Conor Sparkman to Anderson. The drive stalled from there though. McDonald carried twice and netted four yards. Sparkman was sacked and after a short gain by Gribble, the Warriors were forced to turn the ball over on downs to the Cougars at their own 18. Campbell County ran the clock out with five running plays.
Anderson led the Warriors in that quarter with four tackles. On offense, the Warriors netted 49 yards of offense on one possession.
The Warriors were back on the field for the fourth quarter against Clinton. The Dragons had possession first and put together a six play scoring drive.
Just like the previous quarter, the Warriors gave up a big play on first down. Clinton ripped off a 24-yard run on the first play. That was followed by a 11-yard run for another first down. The Warrior defense stiffened and forced a fourth down. Dustin Howell recorded a sack to force a fourth down.
The Dragons went for it and got a lot more than the first down. The Clinton quarterback, who had won the passing contest at halftime, unloaded a 47-yard touchdown strike. The PAT was no good, but Clinton led 6-0 with 9:41 still to play in the period.
The Warriors picked up a couple of first downs before having to turn the ball over on downs. McDonald opened the drive with a five-yard run. Aaron Murray’s carry for seven yards gave the Warriors a first down on fourth down. A 14-yard pass from Sparkman to Blake Young gave the Warriors another first down. The drive again stalled with WCHS turning the ball over on downs to the Dragons at the 40.
Clinton put together another scoring drive. This one covered 60 yards in eight plays. The Dragon quarterback made big plays with his arm and his legs on this drive. The drive culminated with a six-yard touchdown run. The PAT was good making the score 13-0 with 2:58 left.
The Warriors went three and out. Clinton then ran out the clock.
McDonald led the Warriors with four tackles in that period. WCHS had 31 yards of offense in that quarter.
Kerr talked about his team at the jamboree.
”The jamboree gave us a chance to work under the lights with officials and some game time experience,” Kerr said. “I was pleased with our execution, but we still have a long way to go. Our offense has came a long way and is starting to execute. Defensively – we are going to have to take a hard look at as coaches. We are probably going to make some changes. We have to go to work and put an extra emphasis on it. Right now, that’s a big concern for us.”
The Warriors were scheduled to have one more scrimmage this week at Grundy County, but have opted to cancel it.
Kerr added, “We decided to cancel the scrimmage. “We’ve going to take this week and work on Sparta. That’s our focus on getting ourselves better and not worrying about anybody else. We also want to give everyone a chance to get healthy. We’re thin up front due to injuries.”
The Warriors will open their season at Warrior Stadium on August 29th against Cookeville.