Falcons set for speedy Tigers

By JOHN VERSER
Glasgow Daily Times

TOMPKINSVILLE November 20, 2008 09:11 am

— Speed kills.
Or at least that’s how the saying goes.
Monroe County hopes to avoid that fate on Friday when the Falcons host speedy Bardstown in a second round Class 2A playoff game. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in Tompkinsville.
“They’re an extremely, extremely fast team,” Monroe coach John Petett said. “Their team speed is unbelievable. That’s something that we’ve got to work on to try and contain.”
In addition to speed, one of the biggest problems that the Tigers pose to their opponents is the amount of looks that they give offensively. Bardstown gives everything from spread to option looks and everything in between.
“They try to spread you out and get their speed to the corner,” Petett said. “They’ll go four (wide) outs, they’ll run some option, they like to run a fade route to their wide receiver and they go power with their fullback.
“We’ll have to play solid in all phases of the football game.”
Petett hopes that the Falcons’ solid ground game, led by sophomore Tanner Kendall, can keep his team’s defense off the field. Kendall has rushed for 864 yards and eight touchdowns on the season, including seven carries for 75 yards and two scores in last week’s playoff win. Senior Caleb Maxey is next on the team with 632 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns.
“We need to come out and control the clock, keep the chains moving and keep our defense off the field,” the Falcons’ coach said.
Quarterback Justin Harlan has thrown for 1,170 yards and 16 touchdowns and six interceptions on the season. Neil Wilson has caught 31 passes for 698 yards and nine touchdowns – all team highs.
Monroe enters the contest 10-1 on the season. The Falcons, whose lone loss was against Greenwood, have won five straight games. Bardstown is just 4-7 on the year, but has won three of its last four contests.
“You can throw that record out, because they’re a very good football team that has played a monster schedule,” Petett said.
Both teams had relatively easy wins in the first round of the playoffs. The Falcons rolled over winless Fort Knox 48-7 at home, while the Tigers topped Metcalfe County 48-0, also at home. The Falcons’ win last Friday was their first playoff victory since 2002.
“We’ve told our guys that in Class 2A, there’s only 16 teams practicing this week,” Petett said. “We’ve been in the playoffs, but the last four or five years we haven’t made it this far. From here on out, anything we do just adds to what these guys have accomplished this year.
“There’s no pressure on us. We need to go out and have fun and enjoy it.”