'Birds hope to capture win versus 'Cats
By KRIS BAGLEY sports@leader-news.com

L-N Photo by Chris Barbee Field General Ricebird quarterback Tyler Woods (46) puts the ball out for a hand off in El Campo's 20-7 win over Terry Friday.

After one week, the 'Birds are 1-0 and the 'Cats are 0-1 in district, but that does not mean anything Friday.

When Bay City travels to El Campo, the records may as well be wiped clean, because the only thing that will matter is what the scoreboard reads once the 101st meeting between these two rivals is over.

Opening week in District 24-4A play featured a pair of important games.

El Campo's 20-7 win over Terry and Lamar Consolidated's 62-14 romp over Bay City set up a big showdown this week as the Blackcats come to town.

Considered one of the top teams in the area, Bay City traveled to Rosenberg Saturday and may have left its defense behind. Lamar got out to an early start and led 42-0 by halftime.

After dropping an important game to start district, El Campo Head Coach Bob Gillis is not looking at the Blackcats any different. He said Bay City is still a top team and could rebound from such a fluky loss.

"It's just one of those games where Lamar scored quick and it got out of hand," Gillis said. "Bay City is good. They've got a lot of talent. Bay City is going to come here ready to play and we need to be ready to play. Our kids will be excited.

"Last year at this time, we were 0-1 and Bay City was 0-1, so it was a crucial win. I still feel like it's very crucial for us to win. This would really help us in the playoff race."

The Blackcats present potential problems for the 'Birds with their quick-strike offensive attack.

Senior quarterback Shaun Rutherford is a dual threat for the 'Cats. He is one of the district's top passers as well as rushers and leads Bay City in a fast pass-first offense.

The Blackcats prefer to line up without a huddle and snap the ball within the first few seconds of the play clock to give the opposing defense little time to make adjustments.

"Bay City can score real quick from anywhere," Gillis said. "They run an of- -fense similar to Texas Tech and they've got some big-play people. They'll take a little 5- yard screen pass and turn it into an 80-yard run. They're going to make plays and when they catch the ball, we've got to be able to tackle them."

The Blackcats tried a few screen passes against Lamar and should continue that method in El Campo. The play involves a short pass close to the line of scrimmage where several blocks are set up. Usually a screen is for a short gain, but good blocks can also lead to long scores.

In order to stop the screen, the Ricebird defense will need to have quick reaction time.

"You have to run to the ball, you have to get off blocks and when you get there, you have to make the tackle," Gillis said. "It's a pretty effective play and they do it very well. If they catch it, we need to tackle and not let them make a big play."

Bay City makes potentially a good match for El Campo's slow style of taking as much time off the clock as possible with several rushing plays.

Last week against Terry, the Ricebirds used the run to dominate the time of possession. El Campo had the ball for 36 of 48 total minutes against the Rangers. When the offense is that efficient, the opposing team barely has a chance to score.

"We think that for us to have any success, we've got to be able to move and control the football," Gillis said. "We were able to run the ball a little bit and in the first half, I thought we were pretty efficient on passing. Tyler Woods threw the ball very well.

"We think the best defense is a good offense. We don't want to get into a scoring match. You're going to win more games than not if you can (move the ball). This week against Bay City, we're going to try to do the same thing."

Ricebirds 20, Terry 7

El Campo's offensive style led the 'Birds to a major win.

Woods ran in for two scores on quarterback keepers while fullback Anthony Terrell claimed one touchdown to boost El Campo to a solid win.

Along with the three touchdowns, the Ricebirds totaled 409 yards, 338 of them coming through the ground game.

While the offense was racking up the yards, the defense allowed only one score.

Terry managed a touchdown in the second quarter, but never came close the rest of the game thanks to a stifling defensive attack.

Despite El Campo's success against the Rangers, there are a few areas the 'Birds are seeking improvement in practice this week.

The Ricebirds missed on an extra point and two field goals, one from 41 yards out and the other from 32.

"The kicking game is a concern," Gillis said. "We missed an extra point, which is big, and we missed two field goals. We need to be able to convert extra points. Now, the 41-yard field goal, that's a tough one. The other (field goal), you can't say we just missed it. We had a guy coming in we should have blocked. We just weren't very sharp all the way around on the kicking team."

Again, El Campo's offense ran into flag trouble. Some penetrations into Ranger territory were called back due to penalties. Gillis is working with his team to fix those mental mistakes before Friday's game.

"We've got to correct that," he said. "We'd drive the ball down to the 20 and then all the sudden it's on the 35. We do it again and sooner or later, you're not going to be able to move. We've got to cut down on our penalties."

Of course, the big focus this week in practice is preparation for the Blackcats. With Bay City coming to town, Friday should be quite the rivalry match. Still, Gillis insisted the main reason why this game is important is because it is El Campo's second district match.

"It is a big rivalry," Gillis said. "It has always been a big game and it has always been a lot of fun. If you talk to our kids, the reason Bay City is a big game is because it's our next district game. Next week is going to be a big game against Foster.

"If we win the game, we still need to win next week. There are games after Bay City. If you put your whole season in this game and it doesn't work out the way you want it to, the whole season is lost. We've still got three district games after Bay City."

24-4A Football DISTRICT STANDINGS