The Central Tigers football team had its one and only preseason scrimmage against the Keys Cougars on Friday night at Tiger Stadium.
On offense, while the first unit was kept out of the end zone, the No. 2s scored twice — both compliments of Kaw-Liga Brewer.
On the second unit’s second possession, Brewer hit Paitton Merrill on a 15-yard touchdown pass, then Brewer took a quarterback sneak up the middle for a 5-yard TD run.
Both offenses moved the ball on the Cougars, who picked off two Central passes on the night. However, the Tigers did not find the end zone.
“I think we only had one (offensive) series that stalled out,” Central coach Jeremy Thompson said. “I’m very pleased with our overall play on the offensive side. We made some mistakes — a block in the back or a hold (penalties) — where there was no need for that. I’m pleased with how we played.”
On defense, the Cougars scored on two big plays of 65 yards — one on a run of 65 yards and the other was a 65-yard touchdown pass.
However, on the other Keys drives, the Central defense stymied them. To help the defensive cause, Aiden Smith got a strip fumble recovery and Justice Sayre had a fumble recovery. Braxton Prewett had a pass break-up, while Dakota Jackson had a quarterback sack.
“We had two breakdowns in coverage,” Thompson said. “You don’t ever want to see that, but at the same time you want to see it in a scrimmage. When you make those mistakes, you want to make them so that you can fix them. Overall, I was very pleased.
Now, the Tigers will wait until their season opener at 7 p.m. Sept. 5 on the road against the Heavener Wolves at Heavener’s Harvey Stadium to get their next game-type situation. Thompson said there are some things he wants his team to do to better itself come the season opener.
“We need to continue to get into better shape,” he said. “There’s nothing like game shape. We have to play fast in practice. Our tempo has to be up. That’s the main thing for me. We can correct mistakes, but in Week 1 I know not everyone is typically in great (game) shape. We want to be the best (game shape) we can.”
Central quarterback Braxin Goodson looks to throw a pass against Keys during Friday night’s scrimmage at Tiger Stadium.
DAVID SEELEY | SPORTS EDITOR
