West Lowndes was able to run wild on Friday night. The Panthers would use a strong run game to get past the Tigers fell to West Lowndes 34-6 in the season opener.
The game was called in the third quarter due to weather.
“We just didn’t play well,” said Ethel coach Dave McCrory. “We had several dropped passes on offense and that’s an area we need to concentrate.”
Offensively the Tigers could only manage 163 yards of total offense. Quarterback Reeves Threadgill went 5-of-10 passing for 109 yards with a touchdown to lead the offense. His touchdown went to Scott Walters from 22 yards out.
“Offensively we moved the ball well with Threadgill at quarterback,” McCrory said. “Just too many dropped passes.”
Running back Luther Clark had 52 yards rushing on nine carries.
“We did a pretty good job up front blocking,” McCrory said.
West Lowndes had 279 yards rushing as a team. Marquez Holiday had 167 yards on 14 carries with three touchdowns to lead the ground attack. Kelvin Wilburn added 45 yards rushing with two touchdowns, while Quay Sanders added 67 yards on five carries.
“Defensively we got to get better and we are not selling out,” McCrory said. “We arm tackled a lot and that has to improve.”
Up next for the Tigers (0-1) is Central Holmes (1-1) at home on Friday night.
The Trojans lean on a heavy ground game led by quarterback C.J. Head and running back Wykece Johnson. Central Holmes lost its season opener to Park Place and bounced back last week with a 35-0 shutout win over East Rankin.
“They’ve played two good teams and rely heavily on the ground attack,” McCrory said. “They feed Johnson the ball a lot and he’s a good player. They keep you honest by running quarterback counter and try to outnumber you on offense.”
