Bulldogs searching for first victory

SCOTT CITY -- Both Portageville and Scott City look to break into the win column, following opening-day losses, when they square off on Friday night at Scott City High School.

Portageville, coached by Ashley Swims, hosted Piggott (Ark.), falling 19-14, as Piggott scored two second-half touchdowns while holding the Bulldogs scoreless.

The sophomore-dominated Rams, coached by Terry Flannigan, showed their youth in a 28-6 loss to a rejuvenated Malden team.

Last season, in a matchup of the SEMO South Conference rivals, Scott City, en route to an 8-2 season, bested the Bulldogs in a close one, 14-7.

Portageville appears to have an edge -- overwhelmingly, in terms of experience -- this time around. They return 11 seniors and several other returning starters off last year's 5-5 squad.

Scott City, on the other hand, graduated most of its 2004 cast, especially at the skill positions. Among those were the area's leading rusher Matt Schaeffer and strong-armed quarterback Mark Johnston.

Swims praised his team's effort against Piggott, but lamented costly mental and physical mistakes.

"We had some fumbles early and that killed us," he said. "Then we missed a lot of tackles on that 60-yard run."

The 60-yard Mohawk touchdown proved to be the backbreaker for the Bulldogs, who also fumbled four times, losing two.

Cutting back on mistakes, obviously, will be a key for the Bulldogs. On the bright side, the Bulldogs showed an ability to move the football on the ground, rushing for a total of 151 yards. Four Portageville backs, Casey Ash, Leonard Boyd, Trey Mosby and C.J. Medley, rushed for 30 yards or more. Ash led with 49.

Run defense has been a major concern of Flannigan throughout the preseason. Malden justified his worries as they ran through and around the Rams for 292 rushing yards. The Green Wave attempted but one pass, choosing to stay on the ground for 38 of 39 offensive plays.

"We found out, No. 1, that we have a lot of work to do on defense and, offensively, we need to become more consistent and finish our drives," said Flannigan. "We did move the ball, but we'd miss a block or miss a pass here and there--just kind of shot ourselves in the foot. Those were the two big things that we took from that game."

An experienced offensive line, led by seniors Ryan Gill, Jared Brands, Paul Davidson, Thomas Bracey and Kyle Turley, keys the Portageville offensive attack out of the Wishbone.

Said Flannigan, "Up front, they do a really good job, so we're going back to work on defense hard this week and work on running to the football and, when we get there, wrap 'em up and that's what it's going to take to slow them down."

Senior running back and linebacker Jonathan Barr was a standout on both sides of the ball in Scott City's opener.

"Barr had a pretty good night, offensively and defensively," said Flannigan. "He rushed for about 80 yards and had more than 15 tackles."

Flannigan said the key for his club on Friday would be to slow down the Bulldogs' offense and capitalize a few times themselves on offense.

"If we can do that, we might have a shot," he added.