Following the first two weeks of play where the Bears came up short against a pair of MACCC North Teams in Holmes and Northeast, they are hoping to right the ship Thursday as they open South Division play with a road contest at Pearl River.
"It's been a great week for us," Southwest head coach Cliff Collins said on preparations for the Wildcats. "We came back Sunday and we were energized. Right now we are not in a bad situation. Right now in the South Division, we are 0-0 and now it counts. We have to get this thing rockin' and rollin'. We need to play with confidence and get after it Thursday night."
The Bears (0-2) enter the contest with the Wildcats (1-1) following a tough 49-30 loss at Northeast where Southwest lost the momentum late after getting off to a fast start.
"We were trying to make too many plays," Collins said. "I tell them, just let the plays come to you. Last week we were trying to make it to the Hall of Fame on one play and it doesn't work that way."
After getting past the Northwest Rangers 24-23 in Week 1 in Senatobia, Pearl River fell to Itawamba 10-0 in Fulton. Thursday's game will mark the home opener for the Wildcats.
For the Bears, a couple of players on the offensive end who will be looking to continue their stellar play are quarterback Henry Brewer and wide receiver Damarcco Blanton. Brewer completed over 60% of his passes and tossed three touchdowns last week against the Tigers. Blanton hauled in two of those touchdowns on eight receptions for 72 yards and added an electric 92-yard kickoff return for a score on the game's opening sequence.
Defensively, Jeffery Polk Jr. carried over his stellar play from Week 1 to Week 2 finishing with eight tackles. The leader against the Tigers was Koren Harris who, from his safety spot, showed great range, covering much of the field and finishing with a team-high 11 stops.
One aspect that has plagued the Bears thus far is how they finish ball games. Despite getting off to strong starts, the intensity and level of play hasn't remained as consistent as Collins would like for it to be.
"This week, we did some things different so we will finish practice with more tempo," Collins said. "Unlike in the past when we have been finishing with team (drills), we are going to add tempo so that we can finish on a high note."
Collins adds that when it came time to prepare for the Wildcats, he noticed on film that they display a spread offense underneath new offensive coordinator David Boykin.
"It is a wide-open offense," Collins said. "It is more spread with their new offensive coordinator. They have a great football team and they play pretty good as far as bend but don't break. We just have to go in and play hard."
Pearl River is led by quarterback Kabe Barnett who has thrown for 224 yards and two touchdowns thus far. The combination of Jacoby Jefferson and Barnett have run for 80 and 91 yards respectively. Javonta Caldwell is the leading pass-catcher with seven for 40 yards. Defensively, Travis Bendolph Jr. leads all tacklers with 18 to go along with one sack, a pass break up and a fumble forced.
The Bears and the Wildcats are scheduled to play Thursday at 7 p.m. at TD Holden Stadium in Poplarville.
