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October 5, 2012

Football teams travel for conference matchups

By Gregg A. Sims Washington Times Herald

WASHINGTON — Washington plays its final Big 8 Conference game of the season at Jasper, while North Daviess hopes to catch, and pass, North Knox in the Southwest Seven in football games this evening.

Washington

The Hatchets (2-5, 0-5 Big 8) travel to Jasper to face the Class 4A No. 3 Wildcats (7-0, 4-0) at Ruxer Field.

Vincennes Lincoln handed Washington a 42-7 loss at Hatchet Hollow last Friday. That game was marked by Lincoln returning the first two punts of the game against Washington for a 14-0 lead before running an offensive play.

“When you’re down 14-0 four minutes into the game, you know the rest of the night is going to be an uphill battle,” Washington coach Kelly Brashear said. “You’re behind the 8-ball before you have a chance to run a defensive series.”

Washington enters the game, losing its last three by a 137-48 margin.

“I can’t speak for the kids, but from what I see, the kids are just as frustrated by the way we have played as the coaches are,” Brashear said. “We just can’t seem to find the right buttons to push. We can’t seem to get the mistakes we are making corrected.”

Jasper took Mount Carmel, Ill. (4-2, 3-1), out of a tie for the conference lead last Friday with a 56-22 win. The Wildcats are averaging 31 points per game while allowing eight.

“I think Jasper struggled a bit early with their offense,” Brashear said. “Their defense has been exceptional the entire season. They’ve put some points on the board in the past few weeks (104 in the last two). It seems to be our luck that we are catching them when the offense is catching the defense.”

Added to the difficulty will be the absence of Hatchets Jalen Madison, James Sidebottom and Clayton Johnson.

Madison is still struggling with a concussion-type injury suffered at Princeton. Sidebottom is expected to miss the game with knee issues.

Johnson is expected to have surgery on a shoulder.

“That’s three starters and that does not help,” Brashear said. “We ‘re going to be short-handed again.”

The Hatchets hope to sustain drives with their ground game, avoid some mistakes, and make some defensive stops. Changes on special teams are also expected.

“We have to try and sustain drives and keep the clock running,” Brashear said. “We also need to try and get some three and outs. We have been hoping to get some of our two-way kids off the field on special teams. I think for the rest of the season, you’ll be seeing a lot of those players not leaving the field a whole lot.”

North Daviess

North Daviess has the chance to catch, and pass, North Knox in the Southwest Seven Conference standings with a win at Bicknell.

North Knox sits in third place at 3-2. The Cougars are fifth at 2-3. A win would give North Daviess the upper hand with both teams entering at 3-4 overall.

Eastern Greene is sandwiched between, but the Thunderbirds are out of the conference with a home game against Southside Home School.

North Daviess dropped three straight while dealing with injuries early. The Cougars are 2-2 in their last four outings.

The Warriors are a team that was blanked by Pike Central to open the season. North Knox lost to Linton, 64-0, last Friday, but defeated Wood Memorial, 53-6, earlier.

The Cougars are coming off a  43-7 win against Wood, a win that was the 100th in coach Scott Helms’ career at North Daviess.

“I think they (North Knox) are better than their record,” Helms said. “They’ve been hurt with injuries much like we have been. I think injuries have played a role in their season.”

The Warriors are paced by Austin Miller (375 yards) and Brennan Duke (335 yards) rushing. Tyler Munday has completed 21-64 passes for 286 yards.

North Daviess has Colton Lengacher in its backfield (1,030 yards).

“We’re both a lot alike,” Helms said. “We both want to establish the run, mix in some play action passes and try to play stingy defense.”

With two games left in the regular season Helms likes the position of his team with two games on the road — the second coming at Springs Valley the following week.

“I believe that especially with a younger team, being on the road the next two weeks can be a blessing at the end of the season,” Helms said.  “They know we have to be at our best.”

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