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Game Day @ Jones College
Action photos courtesy Jucoweekly.org

Football Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information

Bears take on 9th ranked Jones College Bobcats

A pair of teams heading in opposite directions meet on the field Thursday night in Ellisville as the Bears pay a visit to the 9th-ranked Jones College Bobcats.

The Bears enter the game at 1-3 overall (0-2 in the MACJC South) after a 41-14 home loss to Hinds. The Bobcats, meanwhile, are 3-1 (2-0) after a 16-13 home win against Mississippi Gulf Coast.
 
What are the keys to a win for the Bears? Head coach Tim Stowers said "Anytime you go on the road, you'll take a win however you can get it whether it be 3-0 or whatever. You have to maintain your focus on the road and you have to have that edge for four quarters on the road especially against a very good football team like Jones."
 
Stowers, who also serves as the Bears' offensive coordinator, said he expects the Bobcats' defense to be "very athletic. They have very good quickness. They try to disrupt your offensive flow. So, we'll have to equalize that by coming off the ball and carrying out our assignments to the nth degree so we can make sure we can move the football against a really outstanding (and) athletic football team."
 
After four weeks of the season, the Bobcats' defense has been very balanced, giving up 147.8 yards passing and 111 rushing yards per game. To push those numbers higher, Stowers said the Bears will "have to do a good job of maintaining our assignments and the offensive line's got to come off the football and (quarterback) Da' Bryan (Magee) has got to do a good job of reading (the defense)."

"Also," Stowers continued, "when we throw a play action pass or play pass, we've got to do a good job of getting our feet set and reading the secondary coverages correctly and making the throw fairly quickly because they (the Bobcats) do a really good job of getting to the passer."
 
The Bobcats' offense has been as equally balanced as their defense, picking up just over 164 yards passing and 181 yards rushing per game. What will it take for the Bears to keep those numbers down?
 
"It's the same week in and week out for us on defense," said Bears defensive coordinator Kelby Bowman. "We've got to make sure we are going full speed and giving 100 percent effort and just making sure we're sound against the run, first of all."
 
"Opponents are always going to try to establish the run," Bowman continued, "and as a defense we just have to make sure we're gap control and we're gap sound. The kids have just got to be where they're supposed to be and we've got to give a lot more effort versus the run and the pass."
 
Running backs Kalyn Grandberry and Donte Edwards are averaging 118.3 and 83 yards per game, respectively, for the Bobcats. Will the Bears focus their attention on those two and force the Bobcats to give the ball to someone else?
 
"You can't neglect a substitute" said Bowman. "If (Grandberry and Edwards) are in the game, we're focused on the run regardless. If those guys go out of the game and somebody else comes in, they're coming in for a reason; it's because they're a good football player."
 
"We just have to be balanced on defense," Bowman said. "We have to take the same approach versus the run period, regardless who the player is because if you start focusing on one (running back) then the pass will open up so we've got just to be sound on defense. We've got to be smart and physical and be good tacklers and we've got to play faster."
 
The game is set for a 7:00 kickoff at Bobcat Stadium. It will be broadcast on WAKH 105.7FM (k106), K106.net, the k106 app and livestreamed at southwestbearathletics.com.
 
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