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Tommy Young

Football Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information

Bears head to East Central

Two teams searching for a win meet in Decatur Thursday night as Southwest (0-2) visits East Central (0-3) in the first South Division game for the Bears. Kickoff is set for 6:30 at Bailey Stadium on the East Central campus.
 
Southwest fell to top-ranked East Mississippi 59-6 in Summit last week while the Warriors dropped a 47-10 South Division contest at Co-Lin.
 
Southwest head coach Charles Anthony described the game as “one that both teams feel like they should win, if they play well. It’s a game we need to win.”
 
Anthony said “they’ve (East Central) played three pretty good teams to start the year” in Itawamba, East Mississippi and Co-Lin. The Southwest –East Central matchup “is always a very competitive game,” Anthony said, “and this year’s should be no exception.”
 
Anthony said offensively, the Warriors “have always been a good team since I’ve been here (Southwest).” But, this year, “they seem to be (a team) searching for an identity. They move the ball well, but they have a hard time sustaining drives. They run the ball well.”
 
In their three games, the Warriors have totaled 199 yards per game (54.3 rushing, 144.7 via the pass). Against Co-Lin, freshman quarterback Colton Kane (6’ 4”, 215) completed 15 of 22 passes for 195 yards and his first touchdown of the year. He was picked off five times. He has completed 37 of 80 passes on the year for 434 yards with eight picks.
 
Ricky Hunt (5’ 11”, 180) has caught six passes for 127 yards with a touchdown while Brock Hall (6’ 2”, 185) has five receptions for 43 yards. On the ground, East Central has been led by Keshun Shipp (5’ 9”, 215). Shipp picked up 88 yards on 16 carries against Co-Lin.
 
Anthony said he “didn’t really know much about their defense this year.” But, he said “they run a similar front to what we do and they’re going to be aggressive.”
 
When their opponents have the ball, the Warriors have allowed 460.3 yards per game to start the season (312.3 through the air, 148 on the ground). Linebackers Blake Graves (5’ 8”, 215) and Cory Houck (6’, 220) both have 19 total tackles to pace East Central.
 
In listing the keys to the game, Anthony said “We have to be able to sustain drives on offense. That’s something we’ve had trouble doing”, he said. “We need to be able to generate big plays. That’s been lacking.” Also, “we have to be able to prevent big plays on defense. The plays that have hurt us the first two weeks have been the big plays.”
 
The Bears will be looking not only for their first win of the year in Decatur, but to also begin a new winning streak against the Warriors. East Central picked up a 41-28 win last season after the Bears had won the previous five meetings.
 
The game can be heard on the radio on WAKH 105.7FM (k106) or via the internet at k106.net and southwestbearathletics.com. It can also be heard on smart phones by downloading the Tune In app and searching for k106.
 
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