RISON - With four of Rison's next five games on the road, all against stiff competition, Wildcat head coach Caleb Carmikle knows things will only get tougher for his squad as they try to improve over their season opener last Friday - a 20-14 home loss to Dumas.
The Wildcats' first stop this week will take them to Bismarck to face a talented Lions team that battled No. 1 Prescott strong for a little over a half before giving way to the powerful Curley Wolves, 56-20, at home last Friday. Kickoff for Friday night's non-conference game is scheduled for 7 o'clock.
Of course, Rison doesn't have to think too far back to recall a pair of grueling battles against Bismarck only a year ago, games which the Wildcats were fortunate to win - a big 34-31 rally here in September, fol-lowed by a 30-19 playoff victory at home in November. No doubt, the Lions have had the Rison date circled for some time now.
As he stated before the season started, Carmikle knew going in there would be no off week on the 2023 schedule. Now, the Wildcats' new head mentor must find improvement from his charges in preparations for Bismarck.
"It's certainly not going to get any easier for us," Carmikle said Monday. "I think they (Bismarck) are as good as they were last year, even though they graduated their quarterback (Ian Smith)." Smith was a thorn in Rison's side in both games last season. However, Carmikle said the Lions' spread offense is now in the hands of quarterback Ben Keithley, son of Bismarck head coach D.J. Keithley. "He (Keithley) is more versatile than Smith was, I believe. He can throw, or make plays with his legs. It will be another huge test for our defense." Keithly was a receiver in 2022, and is joined by several quality returning skill position players from last year's squad.
However, at the moment, seeing improvement from his own team is Carmikle's biggest concern. After reviewing the Dumas game, Carmikle indicated that the 'Cats m...
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