Series record: Red Bay 1, Westbrook 0
Last meeting: 2001 Red Bay 59, Westbrook 49
Last week: Westbrook 31, Hokes Bluff 26; Red Bay 21, Marion County 17
By Gene Stanley/Messenger Sports Correspondent
If ever a game was a contrast in styles, this is it.
While Westbrook likes to spread the field and throw a lot of passes, Red Bay is more of a run-oriented team.
And on defense, the Warriors will line up in several different formations, trying to fool the other team a bit. Meanwhile, the Tigers run the ‘50’ defense almost exclusively.
“They don’t get out of that defense often,” Westbrook coach Tony Osborne said. “But they know their responsibilities and are very quick to read the keys and be in the right place. They make no secrets about what they’re going to try to do, on offense or defense.”
Red Bay does change up their offensive look somewhat, but favors the I-formation.
“They do a lot of things out of the ‘I,’” Osborne said. “But they love to run the ball. They’re going to throw a few passes but they will run, run, run. They have two or three good backs, a good tight end and a solid offensive line, so they can get away with that.”
A good kicking game completes what Osborne calls a “complete” team. The Tigers are on a five-game winning streak.
Westbrook enters the playoffs “as healthy as we’ve been all year.” The Warriors will have no injured players on the sideline this week.
And Osborne’s complicated offensive schemes are pretty well entrenched by now, as evidenced by the 28.8 points per game scoring average.
“We put in new stuff every week for awhile,” Osborne said. “Now we’re refining what we do and trying to make the most of it.”
Last week against Hokes Bluff, Jonathan Ford was 15-of-31 in passing for 153 yards and three scores.
Jake Kilgo and Jordan McCartney combined to go over 100 rushing yards.