Hitting the road: Bulldogs in search of offense against the Raiders

Published 11:29 am Friday, September 7, 2018

The Pike County Bulldogs are searching for offense and their first win as they head into game two of the season this evening on the road against Houston Academy.

The Bulldogs (0-1), like most teams, have battled the elements all week and were forced to move many of their practices indoors.

“It’s been tough,” said Bulldogs head coach Fred Holland “With it raining like it is, we couldn’t go outside as much. I think we have been outside only one day this week. All we could do is chalkboard stuff and work out in the gym when they didn’t have volleyball games.”

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It has been exceptionally tough considering the Bulldogs lost last week and the week prior to Charles Henderson in a jamboree.

“We always want to (practice),” Holland said. “That’s how you improve week to week. I can say we had a good practice on Monday. When you get outside, you get a chance to work on a lot of things. We were kind of limited on that.”

The Bulldogs are coming off a 16-0 loss to Alabama Christian in the season opener in Brundidge.

“We missed a couple of assignments that would have allowed us to continue some drives,” Holland said. “We missed a couple of passes. It shows how important it is when you’re playing a tough game and It’s 0-0 and all of a sudden a team scores, you have to learn how to bounce back.”

The Bulldogs are in search of offense. In their first two games – including the jamboree against the Trojans – the Bulldogs have scored a total of 16 points. The hope is the Bulldogs are on the verge of breaking out offensively.

“We are getting there,” Holland said. “We had a lot of different parts to put in after last year. The guys are still learning and the coaches are still learning. I think we are on the right track. We are looking for some exciting things. We realize in the region you have to score and that is something we have been working on.”

Tonight’s game against the Raiders marks the beginning of region play. Every game counts, but region contests carry more weight.

“It’s very important,” Holland said. “Everybody is looking to come out on top. To do that, you have to win.”

The Raiders come into the game 1-0 after defeating McKenzie 48-12 last Friday night. The win snapped a 19-game losing streak that stretched all the way back to week two of the 2016 season. Jamie Riggs is in his first year as head coach for Houston.

“They don’t put it in the air very much. When they do it will be in the flats,” Holland said. “They say their strength is on the front line. We have a tall task in slowing them down up front; that is something we have been stressing all week. We look forward to the challenge.”

Another challenge for the Bulldogs will be going on the road for the first time this season.

“It will be something new because we have a lot of guys on our team that haven’t done it,” Holland said. “We have very few returning, so it will be something new for some of the younger guys. Hopefully the older guys that have been here for a while can help guide them in the right direction.”

This will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Westgate Park in Dothan.