Unfortunately for the Tigers, the schedule doesn’t get any easier.
Belton coach Rodney Southern watched this week’s opponent, Round Rock McNeil, roll fellow District 12-5A team College Station A&M Consolidated 26-3 last week and he knows this week’s challenge may be even tougher.
“The biggest thing is they’re much improved from a year ago,” said Southern, whose Tigers host the Mavericks at 7:30 tonight in their home opener at Tiger Field. “They’re more physical on the offensive and defensive lines and their running game was impressive. They physically controlled the line on offense and did a tremendous job of opening holes for their running backs.”
Traditionally known as a team that likes to throw the ball around in its spread offense, McNeil relied heavily on its ground game against A&M Consolidated, rushing for 346 yards and completing only three of nine passes.
Junior 220-pound tailback Adrian Smith rumbled for 139 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries, Reginald Cole scored on runs of 17 and 13 yards and had 87 yards, and Tracy Mitchell added 80.
“We’ve just got more running backs and we’re going to take what the defense gives us,” said seventh-year Mavericks coach Robert Wilcox, whose team threw for 270 yards and ran for 165 in last season’s 28-25 win against Belton.
“Our kids came out and played real hard. We did a lot of things bad, but the thing our kids did do was give us a great effort. Our execution was not where we wanted it to be.”
That doesn’t bode well for Belton, which allowed 278 rushing yards on 30 carries (9.3 per run) against Ennis. But Southern has a simple plan to contain McNeil’s rushing attack.
“We have to slow them down on first down,” he said. “They rushed the ball for something like 4 or 5 yards on first down. It’s a lot easier to call second-and-3 than second-and-9.”
Wilcox also said McNeil had some breakdowns defensively, but the statistics don’t suggest it. The Mavericks allowed only 174 yards and eight first downs, and they forced five turnovers.
According to Wilcox, the Mavericks struggled to line up correctly against Consol, something he says can’t happen against Belton’s versatile, shifty offense.
“They have so many different formations,” he said. “They run plays that you have to be aware and not be asleep, because if you are they’ll have someone wide open.”
Southern is handing the ball to sophomore quarterback David Ash, an Academy transfer who was 11-of-17 passing for 129 yards last week. He replaces junior Kevin Thornton, who will see time at receiver after hauling in three catches for 16 yards from Ash.
“We’re going with David because we have to throw the ball more,” Southern said. “It also gives us the flexibility to use Kevin in the passing game. We also may use him (Kevin) some during the game at quarterback because there are some things we like from Kevin.”
Ash looked excellent in his first varsity Class 5A action, connecting with Thornton, Jarrett Crowell and Tayron Martin twice each.
What cost Belton was its ineffective running game - 28 yards on 27 carries - and its inability to score on two critical third-quarter drives that would have brought the Tigers to within two scores.
In order to knock off McNeil, Belton will need strong a performance from Ash, must find a way to take advantage of scoring opportunities and hold down the Mavericks’ offense just enough.
“We have to finish drives offensively,” Southern said. “When we have the opportunity to score, we have to get points. Defensively we have to be able to slow them down on first down.”
