When Kosciusko defeated Choctaw Central 35-8, the Whippets used a bend-but-don't-break defense that stopped the Warriors near the goal line three times. Kosciusko was the victim of the same type of defense in a 27-0 loss to unbeaten West Lauderdale.
“We actually moved the ball pretty well most of the night, but we couldn't finish drives,” said coach Casey Orr. “West Lauderdale did a good job of bending but not breaking and making sure we had a long field. We never got a short field that we could take advantage of.”
The Whippets reached the Red Zone twice. “One time a penalty set us behind the chains.” That led to a turnover on downs.
On the other occasion, Kosciusko did not get a favorable spot from the officials. “We had third-and-one. We picked up the first down but the officials said we didn't. Then we had fourth-and-one. We picked up the first down but the officials again said we didn't. It's just one of those things.”
West Lauderdale scored on the Knights' first two possessions for a 14-0 lead. “We got behind early and it took us out of what we wanted to do offensively. I’ll give our guys credit, after those first two drives, they really battled all night.”
Despite being shut out, Orr said quarterback Caden Greer played well. “He did a good job of keeping his eyes downfield. He extended plays and made some plays for us.”
Greer was 17 of 28 passing for 151 yards and ran for 31 yards. The Whippets had 106 yards on the ground, led by Thomas Olive with 16 carries for 48 yards. Lee Wade had eight receptions for 69 yards, Derrick Manning three for 53 yards.
On defense, linebacker Eli Kemp had seven tackles, with three of losses and one sack, and linebacker Javen Mallett six tackles, with a sack. Defensive back Jaquavous Pace had five tackles, defended two passes and recovered a fumble.
Orr said the defensive line of Reggie Carter, Kantavious Brown and Tavion Clayton played well.
West Lauderdale had 344 yards of offense, led by senior quarterback Jackson Parker, who totaled 297 yards and three touchdowns running and passing.
Kosciusko is 5-2 and 1-1 in Region 4-4A. West Lauderdale improved to 6-0, 2-0 in region play. The Knights have outscored their opponents 253-61, with no game closer than 19 points. West Lauderdale is the state’s second ranked 4A team according to the website MaxPreps.
Kosciusko has a home game with Leake Central Friday.
