Thursday, September 1, 2011

WEEK 2 (2011) GREENWOOD @ GAFFNEY

Head Coach Dan Jones and his Indians won round one of their PAYBACK TOUR last week, as they soundly defeated the Dorman Cavaliers 35 to 14. Round Two is Friday night at The Reservation, as they host the Greenwood Eagles. The Eagles defeated the Tribe 10 to 7, in Greenwood last season. Let's look at this week's match-up.

Greenwood @ Gaffney

The Greenwood Eagles defeated Gaffney last season, even though the Indians out gained them by a large margin. Gaffney had three costly fumbles that set up all 10 Greenwood points. The Tribe also had some redzone issues, as they had numerous scoring opportunities. The Eagles went 13 and 2 last season losing to Dorman 35 to 28 in the regular season and to Northwestern 42 to 10 in the 4A Division 2 State Championship Game. The Eagles started their 2011 season by defeating Boiling Springs 35 to 0 in Week 1.

The Greenwood offense likes to run from a double wing formation, with a lot of misdirection and play action, to score their points. They are breaking in a new starting QB this season but, they do have three starters back in their backfield. They are not as experienced in the offensive line, as they graduated some of last years starters. They like to run the ball right at the defense.

The Greenwood defense runs a 4-3 with good linebackers and a fast secondary. They are a very aggressive and physical defense as well. They did lose their all-state LB Quinn Backus from last years team. Their three starters in their offensive backfield, also plays a lot in their secondary. On a hot night, fatigue could be a factor for the Eagles.

The Gaffney offense, last season, had 341 yards against the very good Greenwood defense. Gaffney's all-state WR Quinshad Davis was almost unstoppable in last years game, as he had 10 catches for 121 yards. Davis again is off to a great start but, he has a lot of offensive weapons around him that are big time producers. First year starting QB Joey Copeland is doing a masterful job getting the ball to his playmakers. Copeland is also making plays with his feet, as he has scored 5 TDs in the first two games.

The Gaffney defense has done a very good job, in the first two games, as they are only giving up an average of 176 yards a game and only 7 points per game. They also have four interceptions in the first two games. They had some problems early against Dorman's talented RB Raymond Smith but, they made adjustments and were their dominant self afterwards. They will be tested against the power running game of the Eagles.

Keys To The Game For Greenwood.....(1) Hit some big pass plays to open up their running game. (2) Force the Gaffney offense in to some mistakes. Turnovers were the difference in last years game. (3) Win the time of possession battle. They won this battle last year by a big margin.

Keys To The Game For Gaffney..... (1) Take care of the ball on offense. They had three huge turnovers in last years game. (2) Be productive in the redzone. The Tribe struggled in this area against the Eagles last year. (3) Get the defense off of the field. The Eagles ate up time of possession in last years game.

Game Prediction..... This should be a very physical football game. Players better buckle their chin straps. I believe Gaffney's speed and depth will come into play, in a major way, in the second half. The Indians will win round two of their PAYBACK TOUR..... Gaffney 28 Greenwood 14

TRIBE FACTS..... The Indians lead the overall series against Greenwood 11-6-1. Last years win by Greenwood broke a 7-game Gaffney winning streak in the series.

You can check out my Greenwood @ Gaffney Recap on Saturday. We will look at another Gaffney victory.

Until Next Time.






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