Neville to Battle Airline in Homecoming Matchup... Monroe, LA (Bill Ruple Stadium) -- A glance down the list of Nevilles non-district schedule doesnt reveal anything out of the ordinary. Every game is slotted in its customary place from the last few years. Ruston to open the season as tradition dictates, followed by Ouachita in week 3, Carroll in week 4 and then whats become a familiar opponent to wrap things up in Airline. Its not often a team plays up in classification for homecoming, but oddly enough, itll be the second time in three years the Class 5A Vikings visit to Bill Ruple Stadium has coincided with the event. Airline is far from the sacrificial lamb thats usually brought in to appease the returning alums though. In Mickey McCartys words, the Vikings (2-2) were one of the few teams who really outplayed Neville in 2013. Even if the Tigers (3-1) didnt need a reminder, they got one right off the bad during Mondays team meetings. By the time we showed them the film they had a pretty good picture that this is a quality football team were facing, McCarty said. We were lucky to get out of there with a win last season so our players have respect for what Airline does and how they do it. Neville escaped Bossier City with a 30-20 win, but not before drawing one of the better efforts from an Airline time that exceeded the Tigers physically on the line of scrimmage. Defensive tackle O.J. Smith — the catalyst for the Vikings success in the trenches — currently suits up for the Alabama Crimson Tide, leaving behind his 2013 running mate Charlie Mathews, who McCarty thought caused the most problems that night. Last year at this time, a lot of the same guys were playing against each other…its going to be a great battle on Friday night, and the (lines) will be a big key, Airline coach Bo Meeks said. McCarty said the offensive lines continued improvement has been the key to an offense thats shown its overall versatility each week. As teams continue to key on Kavontae Turpin, the Tigers are finding new faces — and ways — to put up points. Just looking at the box scores weve had 12 to 13 players score points, including four different kickers. I dont know if weve ever had that many players do that since Ive been here, McCarty said. All that starts with the offensive line and Im excited about that group continuing to play at a high level. Meeks is known for developing passers, but McCarty said what the Vikings are doing this year has more of a Gus Malzahn/Auburn flavor to it. Junior Shuncee Thomas is Meeks main option out of the backfield and hell also dial up a variety of plays for junior Darian Germany similar to the way Neville uses Turpin. Fridays game concludes Airlines gridiron smorgasbord of northeast Louisiana opponents, where the Vikings hung with West Monroe in a 27-14 loss, beat Franklin Parish 28-14 and were shocked by Ruston 12-7. In the loss to the Bearcats, sophomore quarterback Noah Hildebrand threw five interceptions. Hildebrand and junior Thomas McKain both took snaps against West Monroe, which could continue again this week. I thought both guys play well. Thomas had a great completion percentage and Noah came in and did some things well, Meeks said. Hopefully we both grew there and theyre ready for the task Friday. Coming off a performance where T.J. Lemoine, Corey Straughter and Herschel Carter all picked off passes, McCarty hopes that interceptions become a consistent trend for the Tiger secondary. Every game is different but we were extremely proud of those guys. They broke on some balls that were outstanding, McCarty said. Turnovers are a big part of the game and with two evenly matched teams they could play a big role. Who/What to watch: Airline defensive tackle Charlie Mathews returns as one of the key pieces of a Viking defensive line that gave Neville problems in 2013. Get in the game: Defensive backs T.J. Lemoine, Corey Straughter and Herschel Carter all recorded interceptions last week against Carroll.
Posted on: Fri, 03 Oct 2014 23:41:23 +0000
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