Week 7

Brian: The Coach A Show is brought to your way by the Barn Store, where they're all about creating quality spaces for your storage needs. Whether you need a barn, a storage unit, a garage, they've got you covered. It's a family-owned and operated business. The Barn Store, proud supporters of Wolfpack Football. Hello, Wolfpack Nation, and welcome to the Coach A Show. I'm your host, T. Carter, Voice of the Wolves, alongside Bill Alexander, Coach A, head coach of the Liberty Creek Wolves. This past Friday, the pack traveled to Greenbrier High School to meet up with the Bobcats. Greenbrier was coming off a 35-28 win over the Portland Panthers. ⁓ they had all an overall record of one and four coming in the matchup with the Wolves. The pack. Since that opening overtime loss to East Robertson, well, we hadn't lost a football game. And five straight victories have taken the Wolves from O and one. And I remember you having a little postgame talk up there and talked about the last time we went O and one. We came out and did the same thing and now we're five and one and now ⁓ they're one and we're one and ⁓ in the region six four A with this thirty-four fourteen victory. Over Greenbrier. Well, coach, the the encouraging thing about this Liberty Creek team is these Wolves have shown they don't necessarily have to win the same kind of football game every Friday night to take home a win. Yeah, I mean I think we're playing really well. We've we've played ⁓ tight ball games with l we're low scoring and you know we've proved we're able ⁓ the ability to score. And you know, Friday night we were lucky enough to Get control of the game really early. ⁓ we had five possessions in the first quarter and scored on all five of ⁓ and ⁓ you know, had a thirty four to nothing lead at the end of the first quarter and then ⁓ kind of started subbing from there and just and cruised the rest of the way through. What'd you identify that you absolutely had to do to beat this ⁓ these Bobcats? Well, you know, I think ⁓ they've kinda found something on offense. They got that option scheme and the quarterback, ⁓ you know, he's played really, really well. And so, you know, we felt like we had to ⁓ really contain him at quarterback and then and then we felt like we could throw the ball downfield and then the flats on him and and so we were able to do that early. ⁓ I think they had four first quarter possessions and they had three three and outs and one first down. So so the defense played really well, gave us the ball with great field position and and the offense was able to ⁓ really in the first quarter we threw it way more than we ran it and they were able to be efficient doing that. I think Barrett was seven for seven in the first quarter. So it's it's hard to beat that. Or to beat it. What allowed the offense to establish itself so quickly ⁓ early in this football game? Well, you know, I just think again, I think ⁓ you know, Barrett was seven for seven and we had ⁓ I think over the course of the game, seven different receivers that ⁓ that caught the football and so you know we were able to ⁓ take our game plan and and and really execute what we thought was gonna be open and and it and it was. So once you had the advantage, which you clearly did going in at half, what kind of ⁓ changes to the plan did you make? ⁓ you really didn't change much, you know, with ⁓ you know, we s we played our our our twos and some of our threes, ⁓ beginning in the second quarter and ⁓ you know, just kind of tried to to get through. You know, they ended up scoring once in the third quarter and once in the fourth quarter and got the ball back and and we didn't want to let it get to a two score game. So ⁓ we ended up sticking our ones in for that last ⁓ drive of defense and they were able to get a stop and they missed a field goal on that. And so ⁓ ⁓ that's not really what we wanted to do, but we've we felt it was important not to let it to get to a two score game and you know when the guys came in they managed to get a stop. You know, normally we're we're we're gonna talk about who made these contributions and who made that contributions, but whose contribution might not show up necessarily in the stats. You know, I think there's a lot of people that that's true for and there's a lot of things that when we look at w at the things that we do to give up ⁓ ⁓ you know, we give helmet stickers every week. I think ⁓ you know, Mason Upchurch is playing really, really well on special teams, kickoff and punt team, and and ⁓ you know, we we only had one kick. We let ⁓ our sophomore kicker, Marcel, kick the opening kickoff of the second half. And that one didn't go into the end zone. It went close to the end zone. It was the only one that we had that wasn't a touchback. And ⁓ you know, Mason and Ty Porter ended up making the tackle on like the 17-yard line. So they ended up with worse field position. than they would have gotten if if we'd have kicked it in the end zone. And so, you know, I think there's a lot of little things like that are going on. I think the defensive line, the offensive lines are playing pretty well. And ⁓ you know, I think the thing a lot of people don't see that we give away every week is a is ⁓ we give away two or three scout team players of the week. And those are guys that probably don't get to play much during ⁓ Friday night or sometimes some of them don't play any at all on Friday night, but they're the guys that you know, run the other teams, the opposing the p the ⁓ opponents offense and defense through the week and ⁓ and so you know we have a lot of guys that contribute a lot in that and what they do is just as important as as what anybody else does to make the team what it is. Absolutely. You know, I I was talking to a a a Tennessee coach, a legend, if you will, ⁓ coach Doug Dickey over the weekend, and he was telling me that, you know, sometimes when someone's not throwing the ball to the left side because that cornerback that cornerback is so outstanding. You're not going to that left side. They're throwing to the right side. The right side guy gets all the credit 'cause he's out there on every play and gets all the attention, but it's really the left side that's doing the job for you. Yeah, you know, I think there's so much that goes on in a game that probably most people don't realize just in terms of management of the game and and and who's in what spot and what they're doing. You know, and our guys I think have a pretty good understanding of of what we're doing and why we do it. And so ⁓ if you can kinda teach them not just what to do but why they're doing it, I think it really helps and I think our guys are really bought into that. No question. Well the PAX D certainly has. They're playing at a dependable level as five straight wins for us. During that five straight run, nobody scored more than fourteen points against the Wolves. And now Greenbrier was step one here in region play. Now the Wolves turn around and go Back on the road to Springfield. And we are they're ⁓ and one in the region. Here we are five and one, one and ⁓ Liberty Cricket's put itself exactly in the position it wanted to be in entering into October. Yeah, I mean, I think ⁓ you know, five and one, one and ⁓ that's where we want to be. We know, you know, I think for everybody in our region, the two teams you look up to are Springfield and Pearl Cone and You know, they happened to play the very first region contest for both of them this past Friday night. And ⁓ Pearl Cone walked away with a really tight victory for the second year in a row. And so ⁓ that makes this Springfield game really meaningful. ⁓ you know, if we can find a way to win this Friday night, I think whoever wins this game Friday night probably has the the inside track to hosting ⁓ a home playoff game. ⁓ there's a lot of football left to play. You know, we got White House after fall break and We've never beaten White House and so that's a game we would certainly ⁓ need to win in order to be able to host and ⁓ you know and and it would be huge to get our first win against White House and then of course Pearl Cone's our last game of the season, but ⁓ certainly ⁓ a win over Springfield this week or their win over us, whichever one wins, I think will have the the inside track to hosting week one of the playoffs. So Springfield already said it, they're five and one, but in a really close region six four A game. They're a perennial powerhouse, this Pearl Cone team is. Yeah, you know, so losing twenty four twenty one, you know, it's sort of ⁓ like Tennessee playing the number one team in the country and losing by three. You don't like moral victories, but you know, it was close. Pearl Cone is ranked number two in the state. ⁓ s I think if I'm correct, Springfield is three in the division. ⁓ this is two five and one teams meeting in Springfield, but The different urgency, isn't it? And the fact that, you know, given that they just lost to Pearl Cone, they'd be in Springfield. Yeah, well I think I think it's ⁓ I mean certainly they don't want to start the region ⁓ and two and so so that gives them a little extra bit of motivation. And, you know, I I think obviously for us, you know, I think when you look at ⁓ where our program is, you know, we've had some really good wins, but You know, we've never really beaten a team like this Springfield team. I mean, that would be a a a tremendous win and stepping stone for our program. So, you know, I think both teams are probably looking at it a little differently. I think for Springfield, they don't want to start O and two in the region and and for us, you know, we know that ⁓ you know, we've beat some good teams. ⁓ we've beat I we feel like, you know, the Gordonsville and Whites Creek wins are ⁓ really good wins for where we are and You know, they're both ranked in the in the state ⁓ sports writers poll as well, but they're ranked in two A and three A. So, you know, we've never beaten a school like Springfield. ⁓ certainly not done it on the road. So ⁓ a lot of motivation for us in that. Well, Liberty Creek's walking in a major six four A contest Friday. ⁓ you just said it. Springfield represents a significant jump in competition and don't so I don't think we need to let Springfield's loss Friday, last Friday night, fool. The ⁓ fool is that the Yellow Jackets are limping into this game in some form or fashion and quite the opposite, really. They're undefeated until they're till they ⁓ going on the road and losing only by three at in Pearl Conte House. Yeah, I mean Springfield's a great football team. They're big and physical up front. ⁓ they got a quarterback who's an efficient passer and an efficient runner. ⁓ their running backs pretty special. ⁓ you know, they run outside zone. They run a lot of gap scheme stuff and the running backs just really he runs vertical. ⁓ he finds his holes on on the zone and and has good cuts. ⁓ they're very ⁓ efficient in the passing game. You know, they got one of the top players in the country, ⁓ one of the top class of twenty-eight recruits anywhere across the nation and ⁓ who already has, you know, ⁓ an NIL deal. So ⁓ I mean I think you know they're very talented. ⁓ they've won a lot of football in the last few years. Coach Wilson does a great job with them. And so ⁓ it is a significant challenge for us ⁓ to go up there and play. It's gonna be a hostile environment. ⁓ Springfield's a great place to play, but they got very passionate fans and ⁓ you know their student body's gonna be there and and they all know what a big game it is. So ⁓ it is gonna be a challenge for us. But you know, we're excited. ⁓ To have the opportunity to play in this big of a football game this late in the season. Would you in in any stretch say it's a little bit of a measuring stick where we are as a program? I think certainly it is. You know, and when you look at ⁓ and I know we don't have a special on this, but when you look at the move to five A, I mean Springfield's gonna be a team who's competed at the five A level and and has had a deep playoff run at the five A level. And now they're back with us in four A this year. And ⁓ in last year. And so yeah, I think it is a little bit of a measuring stick for us to see ⁓ really kind of where we're at with that level of competition. We just said nobody scored more than fourteen against us. So the central question of this matchup might be can Liberty Creek's defense do to Springfield what it's done to everybody else over the last five weeks. Well I think you know certainly our defense has set up our offense. Our special teams have set up our offense, you know, in the the the keys for victory for us this week are going to be the same that they've been the last six weeks. And that's, you know, and I say it every week I know, but it really is the truth. It's winning the kicking game, you know, and the kicking game is winning so many hidden yards for us this year. And it's been such a big part of our success. And then, you know, defense finding a way to get off the field and then, you know, just being super efficient with our offense ⁓ when we have opportunities. And it's not going to be any different this week. ⁓ it's just gonna be a little more of a challenge 'cause I think they are ⁓ by far the best football team we've seen all year. No no doubt about that. And then the Yellow Jackets do. They've reached close to I think twenty seven points in each of their f their their five victories of this this ⁓ this season. But because of that, ⁓ isn't the opening quarter e especially important for Liberty Creek? The Wolves don't necessarily have to score fourteen. in the opening quarter, but they do need to avoid giving Springfield additional possessions through turnovers, poor field position, quick three and outs and such. Yeah, I think, you know, not ⁓ us playing pretty mistake free is going to be important this this coming Friday night. And I think ⁓ you know, being able to keep it close for three quarters and certainly play well in the first half. I think one of the things when you look at at last year's game, I think we were actually up seven to six with about eight minutes left to go in the second quarter. ⁓ and then they managed to score twice pretty quickly in the last eight minutes of the quarter and they were up twenty to to seven at halftime. And so ⁓ you know, for us to be able to hang in there and stay, you know, and keep the game close for the first half and into the third quarter ⁓ is gonna be a big part. And then, you know, we'll just have to wait and see what happens in the fourth quarter. But certainly, you know, when you play good teams and we talk about it all the time, and Springfield's a very good team, when you play good teams and you make a mistake, they have a way of Amplifying those mistakes. And that's something that we've been able to do as a football team over the last five weeks. And it's been essential to our success as we've been able to take mistakes by other teams and we've been able to amplify those. And so ⁓ it's going to be important that we play pretty mistake free this coming Friday night, and that when we make a mistake, we don't give Springfield the opportunity to amplify that mistake because ⁓ they can do that pretty quickly and the game can get away from us. The key to a win could be first downs, field position, possession, you know. So that all adds up to a productive ground game for us, the Wolves. I mean, stay ahead of the change, avoid obvious passing situations, sustain the possessions, reduce Springfield's offensive opportunities. Yeah, you know, I think ⁓ I I think for us right now, balance on offense is where we're best. So, you know, we have the ability to throw and run the ball and and the same's gonna be true Friday night. It's ⁓ You know, if we can get Barrett to to to do a great job with the receiving core and be able to to to complete some passes, ⁓ even short passes and and keep them from loading the box against the run. And then if we're able to just run the ball with a a certain amount of efficiency, that's gonna help us. Well, you know, Coach General Nealan and and both you and I admire some of the elder coaches and the the the ones you might call younger that had great success, like Nick Saban, etcetera. But his he had seven maxims that you made all the ev everybody repeat before you went through the tunnel to go out and play a Tennessee game. Number one was the team who makes the fewest mistakes wins. The pack needs to minimize the mistakes and win the turnover margin. Yeah, I mean I think that's ⁓ that's that's always gonna be the case. There's a reason why he said those seven things. They all matter. Everyone. And what's the injury situation for us Wolves going into this game. I think we're pretty healthy. You know, obviously we've got the same people that were ⁓ that have been hurt for the past few weeks and ⁓ you know we're a little thin at inside linebacker right now with Parker Henderson and ⁓ Malachi Wilson getting hurt in the ⁓ Gordonsville game and they're both play inside linebacker but ⁓ we we came out Friday night we feel like pretty healthy and so so ⁓ hopefully we'll be able to put our best product on the field. Well coach big news for Liberty Creek football at the end of last week We learned that the Wolves will be moving to a new state football classification. ⁓ so we pulled together a special edition of the Coach A show to address the move and what led to the change? What does it mean for the Liberty Creek Football Program? What could it mean for the Wolves schedule and competition going forward? We break it all down in a special edition of the Coach A show available Wednesday, October seventh. And be sure to tune it in. It will give you all the insights you need to know. And some of them might surprise you as to why this move is being made. So Wolfpack Nation, it's the Wolves versus the Yellow Jackets. At Springfield High School, it's this Friday night. It's a game of huge region 648 implications. If you just heard Coach explain, so please come out and show out as the pack needs your support. Kickoff is at seven in Springfield. We want to say a special thanks to Brian Holloway and the production team of the Coach A Show. Want to thank the fine folks with the Barn Store, proud sponsors of Wolfpack Football from day one. And to you, Wolfpack Nation, for your support of our athletic programs and this The Coach A Show. We'll be back next week when we break down this week's game. And ⁓ actually we'll talk more, I guess, next week about the moving into the new state football classification, then we'll follow up the following week with the ⁓ and to analyze the Springfield game. From Coach A and the athletic staff here at Liberty Creek to all of Wolfpack Nation, we hope to see you Friday night in Springfield. Have yourself a safe and winning week.