Bears to face Northeast Mississippi in Booneville

Two teams badly in need of a win meet on the gridiron Thursday night in Booneville as the Bears pay a visit to the Northeast Tigers.

The Bears enter the contest 0-3 overall after a 40-14 loss at Hinds. Likewise, the Tigers come into the game at 0-3 after a 56-0 defeat by East Mississippi.

Head coach Tucker Peavey said the Bears are holding on to their competitiveness, despite their record. "They understand the situation we're in," he said. "They're playing for one another and the ones that are out there (on the field). It's the competitive mentality that you want them to have that 'this is an opportunity for me to do something' and they're working at is and have a great attitude."

"We know that at some point in time we may get back a few of the guys who are injured who are going to help us with our depth," Peavey went on, "and we're going to make sure we're ready when that time comes."

Looking at this week's opponent, Peavey said he thinks the Tigers "are a good football team and they've played some good teams. They're a big, physical football team and we'll have our work cut out for us."

"They're going to be hungry, just like we are," the coach continued. "It doesn't seem they've had the injury bug what we have, but at the same time they've played some really good teams so we'll have to be ready to play."

In order for the Bears to get a win, Peavey said, "Offensively, we've got to not turn the ball over and we've got to make some good decisions with the ball. We're going to have to block them because they run around on defense (and) they're where they're supposed to be so I don't think you can trick them. Defensively, we've got to stop their running game and eliminate the big plays."

Coming into Thursday night, the Tigers are giving up 340.7 yards per contest (211.7 via the rush, 129 through the air). Bears' offensive coordinator Cam Achord said the Tigers are "a good football team." He said his unit will take what the Tigers give them and "not try to do too much, just make the key adjustments. Defensively, they're a good team. They don't give you too much, so we're going to have to take what they give us and move the ball."

Also, Achord said, "We've got to be able to score when we get into the red zone. We're moving the ball fine between the 20s, but we're not finishing. We've got to learn to finish and that's the key."

Defensive coordinator Kelby Bowman said the approach for his squad "had to be the same as it is every week (and) that's make sure we try to stop the run first." The Tigers are picking up 148.3 yards per game via the rush (114 through the air).

"It we allow them to run the ball," Bowman state, "then we're going to be vulnerable to the pass. They have a pretty good running back (Kenzie Phillips-265 yards and 3 scores in three games). He's a tough runner and he's going to get the hard yards."

But, Bowman continued, the Tigers also "can throw the ball. They've played two or three quarterbacks this year so I know those guys have experience. We'll just have to make sure we cover everything when it comes to run and pass because we know they can run the ball and we know they can pass the ball."

Kickoff at Tiger Stadium is set for 6:30. The game can be heard on WAKH 105.7FM (K106), k106.net and southwestbearathletics.com.

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Bears to face Northeast Mississippi in Booneville