RISON - Fresh off their big win over the Barton Bears, the Rison Wildcats will try to secure a first round home playoff game when they travel to Monticello this Friday to face the Drew Central Pirates in the regular season finale. Kickoff time for the 6-3A Conference contest is scheduled for 7 o'clock.
"Even with all we've been through this year, we have that chance for a first round playoff game at home," Rison head coach Caleb Carmikle said Monday. "That's huge for our kids, for this program. We need to go down there Friday with the idea of playing our very best." Rison is 2-7 overall and 2-2 in the conference, while Drew Central is 2-6 and 1-3. The Pirates have not played since Oct. 13 when they met Barton. The Pirates' conference win came over Lake Village, 52-8, an opponent which Rison defeated, 35-0.
"By going out and beating a quality opponent like Barton, it put us in this position, and so, we need to take care of our business, being focused, and improving our game over last week," Carmikle said. "We're still trying to get better in every part of our game." The Wildcats had their best offensive night of the season against Barton, but also came up with timely defensive plays at critical moments in the game to aid in the big win.
As far the Pirates, Carmikle said the Wildcats' opponent this week is a "dangerous and very unpredictable" team, emphasizing his squad will need to be ready for anything.
"They (Drew Central) are a run-pass team with good athletes, and I think they are pretty good up front on the defensive line," Carmikle stated. In last year's meeting at Rison, the 'Cats had to withstand over 260 yards of passing from the Pirates before winning, 48-20. In their win over Barton last Friday, the 'Cats yielded 265 yards through the air.
"I'm proud of the way we've progressed in all areas of our game, but we still have a long ways to go,' Carmikle said. "I hope we can put it all together Friday and loc...
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