No. 4-seed Cougars face uphill battle against unbeaten Exira-EHK
By Drew Herron - NT Sports Editor / Oct. 30, 2013
ANITA – The Cougars have heard all season long what
Exira-EHK is all about.
The No. 1-ranked team in 8-Man Football casts a giant shadow
over most of southwest Iowa, as well as on every school residing in the Rolling
Valley Conference.
Now, as Cumberland-Anita-Massena opens up its playoff run
for 2013, they will do so against Exira-EHK in all its glory.
Separated by perhaps 15 miles around the meeting points of
Cass, Audubon and Shelby Counties, there is a familiarity between the two teams
in this matchup unique to any other pairing across the state Wednesday night.
It’s that kind of acquaintanceship that CAM is counting on
as it attempts to slay the giant.
“This is kind of a special situation with us being as close
as we are, and being conference rivals,” CAM head coach Joe Wollum said this
week.
“It’s a little different than most other matchups, and our
kids are very excited for this challenge. They hear it all the time, how good
Exira-EHK is, they read the papers, and this is a huge task for our guys. I
feel like we are focused and dialed in.”
To say Exira-EHK is the favorite would be an understatement.
The Spartans have been truly dominant in all eight of their victories this
season, getting it done with offense, defense, and special teams.
Only once have the Spartans scored less than 40 points this
season, and four of their eight opponents completely failed to score on
Exira-EHK’s first team defense.
Facing three quality backs in Drew Peppers, Trey Sander and
Nick Peppers, CAM’s defense is going to have its hands full.
“They certainly have an explosive offense,” coach Wollum says
of Exira-EHK. “If they have a weakness, it’s the offensive line, but they more
than make up for it with the way those three guys run the ball. You can put a
good lick on them, and they don’t go down.”
CAM, of course, is not without its offensive means.
The defense at times has been a sore spot for the Cougars,
but rarely has the offense let them down. CAM is averaging 45 points per game,
and sports a balanced offensive attack the likes of which could be totally new
to the Spartans.
CAM junior quarterback Trace Ticknor has thrown for 1,682
yards this season by completing 46 percent of his attempts (91-of-197), and
he’s ran for another 674 yards and 17 TDs on the ground.
Moreover, the Cougars have senior tailback Dylan Amdor to
throw to and hand the ball off to, and Brady Runyan and Michael Holste have
also emerged as viable options to move the ball.
CAM is hoping to keep it balanced just enough to slow down
the high-flying Spartans. After all, the Cougars’ playoff lives might be
dependent upon it.
“If they have a fault on defense, it’s how aggressive they
are,” coach Wollum says of Exira-EHK. “They really jump up and help on the run.
And if we can establish the run, then we can work the play action (pass), and
hit them over the top for some big plays. That (balance) is very important for
us.”
The weather is also expected to play a role in Wednesday’s
game. Turnovers have hit CAM harder this season than Exira-EHK, but coach
Wollum says if the Cougars find themselves on the right side of that ratio,
then it opens things up quite a bit.
“If it’s raining, that might hurt us a little more because
we do like to throw the ball more than they do,” he says. “But a sloppy game
might benefit us in the long run, especially if we can take advantage of some
turnovers. (Exira-EHK) hasn’t really made many turnovers this year, but
hopefully that’s something we can create.”
The margin for error is slim, but CAM will be ready for the
challenge. It’s all laid out for them.
“We need to play perfect,” coach Wollum says. “We can’t turn
the ball over. We need to sustain long drives and finish them. And we need to
find a way to keep them out of the end zone, whether that is through punts or
turnovers, of if we just get lucky. Whatever it takes.”
#iahsfb #camcougars
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