CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – With the race for a playoff spot heating up, Northwest football travels to take on Northeast Thursday, Oct. 10 in a region matchup.
After starting the season out 3-0, Northwest has now dropped its last four contests. Northwest football coach Neil Furnish discussed how his squad can get things turned around, beginning this week against the Eagles.
“Our young men have faced a lot of adversity the past few weeks from injuries to academic accountability,” Furnish said. “With that being said, our young men have really worked hard to take care of their responsibilities in the classroom, so we can focus 100 percent on practice after school this week and our goals of being successful on Thursday night. We are working every day to improve the mindsets of our players to believe in themselves and the man beside them. The motivation of this week remains the same as it is another opportunity to reach one of our goals to play in the postseason.”
It’s no secret that Northeast has had trouble on the defensive side of the ball this season, allowing 36 points-per-game to their opponents. Furnish said his team will not overthink its game plan and merely stick to the script against the Eagles.
“Our plan is to keep it simple and get our playmakers the ball with minimum mistakes,” Furnish said. “Northeast has an explosive offense, so we must do our best to keep them off the field.”
Eagle wide receivers Jaylin Bowser and Tomario Vereen present mismatches for nearly every defense they play. The two combined for 9 catches, 268 receiving yards and two touchdowns Friday in the loss against Clarksville.
“Bowser and Vereen will have success on Thursday if they continue to have the mindset that they’ve developed the last few weeks,” Clark said. “Which is to be able to score anytime from anywhere when given the opportunity.”
The Vikings also have numerous playmakers on the offensive side of the ball in Laqualin Nicholson and Taveris Albury. Northeast football coach Brandon Clark understands it will be a difficult ask of his defense to limit Northwest’s ground game on Thursday.
“We will have to be very disciplined and physical against Northwest’s offensive line if we want to stop those guys from getting the ball,” Clark said. “They have been able to get yards on everybody they’ve played.”
Northeast freshman quarterback Jaiden Puig threw four interceptions last Friday, but also showed why he has a promising future ahead of him. Clark wants his young signal caller to have a short-term memory when it comes to turning the ball over.
“We tell Jaiden to just move on, focus on the next play and shake it off,” Clark said.
The Vikings have had success away from home this season, posting a 2-1 road record. Furnish has harped on accountability the most in practice this week while getting his players prepared for another region test against the Eagles.
“My biggest message that we have used all year and will push even more this week, is that you must believe in yourself and be all for one and one for all,” Furnish said. “If our young men will execute the game plan to the best of their ability, I believe we will have a great chance to reach our goals.”
Northeast (1-6, 1-3) hosts Northwest (3-4, 1-2) Thursday, Oct. 10.