By JON WEBB
Before scoring 28 unanswered points in the second quarter last week, Monroe County started slow against Bardstown, playing the Tigers to a 7-7 tie at the end of the first quarter. Head coach John Petett knows that isn’t an option this week.
The Falcons will travel to Greensburg to play 9-3 Green County for the regional championship Friday. Green beat out Monroe for the district championship, and won the Oct. 23 matchup between the two teams.
All of this makes a fast start even more important, Petett said.
“It’s something we’ve talked about all week. We’ve got to get started fast against Green,” he said. “We hope we can set nerves aside and play solid football (early), but Green is outstanding and it’s going to be a battle.”
“Battle” describes the teams’ previous matchups accurately.
Green held Monroe to a season-low 160 total yards on Oct. 23 en route to a 21-14 win. The Falcons only two touchdowns came off of a 56-yard Neil Wilson punt return and a short Jackson Arnett run in the third quarter.
The team’s last meeting was even more of a battle.
A Jarred Rich safety and Neil Wilson interception helped the Falcons beat the Dragons 14-13 in last year’s regional championship.
Last week, John Petett said no Monroe team had ever competed in two consecutive regional championship games. Now the team has a chance to be the first to win two in a row.
But first they’ll have to stop Chavis McDermott and the rest of the Green rushing attack.
McDermott has compiled 1,636 yards and 17 touchdowns this season, marks nearly matched by fullback Ricky Garrett, who has 979 yards and 16 scores on the year.
Quarterback John Stone has added 584 yards and nine touchdowns while sophomore tailback Donovan Burton has 337 yards and two scores.
McDermott bested Burton’s yearly rushing total in one game last week, when he burnt Danville for 380 yards and three touchdowns on the ground in a 61-22 win.
According to Petett, “outstanding” is a good word for the Dragons’ running game.
“They’ve got an outstanding running game, an outstanding line and they’re very well coached,” he said.
As far as Monroe’s offense, Petett said the plan is simple: get the ball to the playmakers.
“The main thing we’re going to do is get the ball in the skill guys’ hands as soon as possible,” he said. “We’ve worked all week about making good decisions with the football.”
The “skill guys” did plenty against Bardstown last week.
Wilson, Tanner Kendall, Dillion Vickery and Corey Shirley combined for 363 yards and four touchdowns. Wilson also caught a 33-yard play action touchdown pass from Arnett.
“This game is going to come down to who makes the most plays,” Petett said.
And, according to Petett, there’s no reason — not even aches or pains — to fail to make plays at such a crucial point in the season.
“We’re battling a few injuries, and I’m sure (Green) is, too. You don’t look for any excuses when you get into week 13,” he said. “We just hope we give ourselves an opportunity in the fourth quarter to win the ballgame.”
