By Tom Waddill
The Hornets’ mission tonight, and they decided long ago to accept it, is to slow down Montgomery running back Leroy Dobbins.
No team has done it in the first six games of the ’09 season, but the Huntsville players believe they can handle this stern assignment.
So far, the slick and speedy Dobbins has been held under 200 yards only once. By a single yard, Brenham did it in a 14-7 victory over the Bears. But, a 70-yard touchdown run by Dobbins was called back due to a holding penalty.
In five other games, the 5-foot-8, 175-pound back has rushed for 244, 312, 225, 235 and 229 yards. It’s no coincidence that the Bears have won all five of those games.
The Hornets know they have their hands full on homecoming night in Huntsville. But everyone in the Hornets’ camp says this is the kind of challenge that makes the blood flow faster.
“It’s going to be fun — a great defense going against the best running back in the district,” Huntsville linebacker Bridge Blount said Thursday. “If he gets over 150 yards, that’s something different because we haven’t allowed anyone to get 100 yards rushing since the College Park game (on Sept. 4).
“Our coaches have told us we’ll make news if we hold him under 100 yards, so that’s our goal,” added the hard-hitting sophomore Blount.
Shaquille Ross knows it’s going to be difficult, but not impossible, to keep Dobbins under 100 yards. The Bears’ most potent weapon, who reminds the Hornets and their coaches of Tony Dorsett, Barry Sanders, LaDainian Tomlinson and Oregon State’s Jacquizz Rodgers, has rushed for 1,444 yards and 12 touchdowns this season.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Dobbins leads all rushers in Texas and is on pace to run for nearly 2,500 yards in the regular season.
The Hornets say they have a plan to slow down Dobbins’ run at the record book.
“The big things on defense are pursuit and wrapping up,” Ross said. “If we do that, it’ll be a good day for the Hornets. If we don’t wrap up, he can take it 70 yards or more. ... If we don’t wrap up, he’ll make you pay.”
“It’s a lot like trying to catch a chicken,” Huntsville head coach Mitchell Coey added. “Have you ever tried to catch a chicken? It’s hard to do.”
Hard yes, but doable, says Huntsville defensive coordinator Shane Martin.
Martin says the Hornets are geared up for tonight’s challenge.
“We need to tackle him before he gets 30 or 40 yards,” Martin said. “We need to tackle him at the line of scrimmage. We know Dobbins is going to make a big play; he’s made one in every game. But if we can minimize those and hold him to 150 yards or less, we’ve got a great chance to win the game.”
To win the game, the Hornets will have to deal with more than just Dobbins. Junior quarterback Tyler Bolfing has thrown for 769 yards and 10 touchdowns this season, while completing 71 percent of his passes. He has thrown no interceptions.
The son of Bears head coach John Bolfing, Tyler Bolfing has a pair of talented receivers who can also hurt the Hornets. Senior Kyle Stovall has caught 24 passes for 412 yards and six scores, while sophomore Devin Gasaway has nabbed 14 passes for 97 yards and one touchdown.
“Their quarterback has thrown for 800 yards this season, but I’m guessing that their running game opens it up for the pass,” Ross said. “If they beat us, they’re going to have to do it through the air. That’s what we’re going to try and make them do anyway.”
Huntsville’s defense, which has allowed 237.5 yards per game, ranks third overall in the district. The Hornets have been extremely efficient stopping the run. Huntsville leads all 18-4A teams in rushing defense with a 103.3-yard average.
The Hornets, who have given up 18 points per game, are third in scoring defense.
“We’re defensive gurus. We want to be the best defense in the district,” Ross said. “We want to see if we can stop that type of running back. We’re going to see how good our run defense is.”
Defensive lineman Kervin Simmons added, “It’s always exciting to play somebody that’s hyped up. He’s got great vision and cutback ability. As a lineman, we want to get a pass rush on their quarterback. We can shut him down if we get a pass rush going, but we’ve got to stop Leroy first.”
Hornet football notes and quotes
Whoa, three days on grass this week — Huntsville offensive coordinator Kane Harris was giddy with excitement Thursday afternoon. For the first time since the second week of the season, the Hornets practiced outside, on grass (some fake and some real), three times in a week.
On Monday, the players bused over to Bowers Stadium and worked out on the field turf where they’ll play tonight’s homecoming game. The Hornets practiced Tuesday in the old Hornet Gym, then Wednesday they went back outside and spent a few hours on the soccer field above the Joe Clements Field House.
Thursday, they had a short walk-through on the bottom field at Mance Park Middle School.
“We’ve traveled more to practices than we have to games,” Huntsville assistant head coach Shane Martin joked.
“Yeah, this is the first time since the St. Pius game that we’ve been on grass three times in a week,” Harris added. “We’re thrilled about that.”
Busy man gets even busier — Huntsville senior Shaquille Ross has been asked to do quite a bit already this season. After rushing for 71 yards on 14 carries last week in a 21-0 win over Waller, his coaches are asking Ross to do even more.
Ross will start at linebacker and running back tonight against Montgomery. He said he wants to help the Hornets any way possible, even if that means playing nearly every down during a long and exhausting three-hour game.
Will Ross be ready to make a play on Bears running back Leroy Dobbins late in the fourth quarter? You bet, Ross said without hesitating.
“Hopefully at that time, my passion for the game will take over,” Ross said Thursday. “In baseball we say, ‘Take a swig and keep banging.’ That’s what I’m going to do when I get tired — take a swig and keep banging.”
