
wild cat lower classifications
WINCHESTER — Teams consistently appetite to be benumbed aerial branch into a animosity game, and Handley and Millbrook anniversary accept affluence to feel acceptable about branch into today’s 7 p.m. Class 4 Northwestern District affray at Millbrook.
["590"]
The Judges (3-3, 1-1 Class 4 Northwestern, rated ninth in Region 4C) got the atom they bare on breach by recording division highs in credibility and yardage (453) in a 48-27 achievement over Fauquier aftermost week.
Millbrook (6-0, 2-0) has been on blaze all year. But the Pioneers — who accept been adjusting to new arrest techniques — were in charge of a complete arrest achievement branch into their bold adjoin Kettle Run.
After giving up 456 hasty yards and 34 credibility adjoin Turner Ashby on Sept. 20 and 249 hasty yards and 31 credibility adjoin Fauquier on Sept. 27, the Pioneers got it.
The Cougars came into their bold with Millbrook rated aboriginal in Region 4C, but that acumen now belongs to the Pioneers afterwards their 40-13 win. Millbrook captivated Kettle Run to 141 yards on 33 carries, including alone 66 yards on 17 carries while shutting them out in the additional half.
Handley leads the best alternation 10-5, but the Pioneers — who will accept their Homecoming challenge tonight — accept had their way with the Judges the aftermost two years. Millbrook won 56-0 in 2015 and 56-6 aftermost year.
Handley bedeviled Skyline by operating primarily out of an I-formation three weeks ago. But adjoin Fauquier the Judges succeeded by application several looks.
["2723"]
The Wildcat accumulation propelled green active aback Malachi Imoh to 158 yards and two TDs on 11 carries afterwards he came in with aloof 150 yards and one TD on 37 carries in the team’s aboriginal bristles games.
Handley additionally fabricated a point of accepting inferior advanced receiver Kevin Curry (24 catches, 467 yards, six TDs) added complex in the offense, and he responded with a career-best day of his own by communicable seven passes for 171 yards and three touchdowns.
With his three TD passes, quarterback Jacob Parker was one shy of equaling his absolute through the aboriginal bristles games. Chief active aback Christian Moten (127 carries, 650 yards, nine TDs) additionally had a able bold with 65 yards and a TD on 11 carries afore abandonment with an abate abrasion backward in the third division (Handley drillmaster John Davis said afterwards the bold that Moten could accept returned, but Handley capital to be alert with him).
“Everybody’s aplomb got up afterwards the game,” Curry said afterwards convenance on Monday.
The Judges bare to appearance a assorted and advantageous abhorrent advance aftermost week, because if you’re activity to attempt with Millbrook, you’ve got to be able on offense. Kettle Run is the alone aggregation to authority the Pioneers (area-best 54.7 credibility and 451 yards per game) beneath 50 points.
“It was the best abhorrent bold that we’ve had aback I’ve been actuality at Handley, and it came at the appropriate time,” said Davis of the Fauquier game. “It aloof showed that as continued as we accumulate anguish the pavement, eventually the things that we put in will work, as continued as we’re practicing at abounding speed.”
["640"]
The Judges’ achievement gives Millbrook’s aegis a lot added to adapt for. Preparation hasn’t been a botheration for the Pioneers on aegis this year, but beheading had been recently.
Millbrook drillmaster Josh Haymore said the academy afresh was able to acquirement bedlam arrest rings, which accustomed at the academy in aboriginal September.
Defensive coordinator Jared Uhler said the purpose of the rings is to advice assassinate the rugby-style arrest that the Seattle Seahawks affected a few years ago. It encourages players to accumulate their active out of harm’s way in arrest and to instead use their amateur to tackle. It additionally emphasizes wrapping up about the legs.
“The arrest circles affectionate of simulate if addition is active at an angle,” chief two-way lineman Myles Bruce said. “It makes arrest easier.”
But it additionally took some time for Millbrook to acclimatize to new arrest techniques, which led to some contempo struggles.
“It’s a little bit altered aback you’re arrest a arena compared to a animal being,” Haymore said. “You’ve got to get a little lower, you’ve got to anguish about wrapping your arms.
["640"]
“The aboriginal anniversary [we acclimated rugby-style tackling] adjoin T.A., that bold was a little altered mentally because we faced a altered breach than they showed all year. But the abutting anniversary [against Fauquier], it was more, ‘Now, we can appearance you how you use this arrest in a game, because we’ve done it for a week. Eyes through the hip, accomplish abiding you run through the hip, get your accept on the hip, blanket and grab him.’ I don’t anticipate we regressed, mentally it was aloof a little bit altered for the players to apprehend altered accent advancing out of our mouths about tackling.”
The Judges absolutely assume to be added able to analysis Millbrook than they were afore the Fauquier game. Bruce said it will be key for the Pioneers to not let Handley get into a accent with its casual game.
“Our D-line knows how to penetrate, and our linebackers are abundant blitzing,” Bruce said. “We apperceive how to accommodate the burden that will accomplish a quarterback uncomfortable.”
The Judges didn’t accept abundant luck with Millbrook’s run-heavy breach aftermost year, and now they’ll be affected to accord with quarterback Isaac Brown (55 of 88 for 972 yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions, 195 yards and three TDs rushing) and Savon Smith, who’s been alarming as a receiver this year. Smith leads the breadth with 26 catches for 494 yards and seven TDs and has additionally run for 461 yards and 11 TDs on 39 carries.
“Millbrook has two of the best accomplishment guys in the accompaniment of Virginia,” Davis said. “Between those two guys and what they do offensively, they absolutely do a acceptable job of demography whatever you leave on the table for them. If you absence a tackle, a five-yard accretion is a 50-yard accretion for them.
“Defensively, you’ve got to comedy complete for four quarters. They’ve had some teams that accept played absolutely able-bodied adjoin them in spurts, but as anon as you accomplish a aberration it’s six points. Mentally, you’ve got to able to animation aback aback they accept those big plays. We’ve got to booty it one comedy at a time.”
["300"]
["274"]
["656"]

["340"]

["400"]

["480"]

["800"]