St. Joseph looks to rebound against Shiner
Friday, September 4, 2015
by Tony Tsoukalas, Advocate Sports Staff
Victoria Advocate Sports Article | Shiner Comanche Football | Shiner Comanche Sports
St. Joseph football coach Dustin Meaux knows the road doesn't get any easier for the Flyers.
After a 30-0 loss to Goliad in the season opener last week, the Flyers will host a Shiner team that is ranked No. 7 in Class 2A state poll.
Last week Shiner averaged more than 10 yards a carry while racking up 358 rushing yards in a 49-0 win against Industrial. Dadrian Taylor led the way for the Comanches in his first varsity start, rushing for 175 yards and four touchdowns.
Meaux knows for his Flyers to have any shot of pulling the upset, they must contain the speedy junior.
"If we can slow him down, we are in a great position to be successful," Meaux said. "Especially when he runs the toss and the counter, he's a very fast guy. If we can stop him and slow him down, we have a good chance."
The Flyers will also need to improve their offensive execution. Last week, St. Joseph turned the ball over four times, each time driving deep into Goliad territory before giving up the ball. Meaux said the Flyers cannot afford to waste chances against Shiner and made protecting the ball a key focal point in practice this week.
"When we get in the red zone three or four times and have three or four turnovers, it's something you got to pay attention to immediately," Meaux said. "We took about 21 points off the board. That's what we talked about this week, controlling the things we can control."
For Shiner, the challenge will be continuing on a strong performance as the Comanches ready themselves for district play. Shiner head coach Steven Cerny said his team's high ranking won't go to his player's heads and warned his team not to take the Flyers lightly.
"The players know the reason we are successful at Shiner is because of our hard work," Cerny said. "It's not just because we are loaded with talent. Our kids work hard, and they know whenever you put your guard down you are going to be in trouble."
One problem the Comanches might run into is St. Joseph's wing-T offense, which is different from most offenses Shiner will see all season. The task will take on even more difficulty as the Flyers return running back Charlie Quary who missed last game due to a shoulder injury.
"That's probably the toughest part with the low numbers that we have," Cerny said of preparing for the wing-T. "We are only suiting up 21 people on varsity, and it's tough to duplicate what the other team is doing, especially one like this team."
Meaux said he purposely designed a tough schedule in the early weeks of the season in order to prepare his team for district play. This week he spoke to his players about the kind of opportunity Friday night's game presents and what a win would mean to the program.
"It would be one of the defining moments of our turnaround," Meaux said. "To be able to be successful against a quality opponent like that would be a special moment. We got a chance, we just got to make sure we do what we are supposed to do and control what we can control."
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