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By AARON PETCHAL
Football Xtra Writer
WEIRTON -- Coming off a lost last week to Martins Ferry, the Edison football team is looking to get back on track this week against Weir.
The Wildcats and Red Riders are set to do battle at 7 p.m. Friday night up at Jimmy Carey Stadium.
The Wildcats battled last week against the Purple Riders, however, Martins Ferry pulled away for a 34-0 victory last week out at the Edison Unified Sports Complex.
"I told our kids, we watched the film several times, I was proud of how hard they play," Edison (1-3) head coach Mike Collopy said. "I was proud of the effort they played with. We needed a better effort from me personally. We ran into a good team, but I need to do a better job. I was proud of our effort."
Like-wise, the Red Riders came out on the wrong side of things last week as Indian Creek defeated Weir, 42-7, last week on the road at Kettlwell Stadium.
"We look back at the game, and there are some positive we can take away from it," first-year Weir (0-3) head coach Chris Hill said. "One of the positives is we were able to establish the run, but we were not able to sustain drives. (Landon) Haught had a nice kickoff return. (Amir) Williams had a nice kickoff return. We were able to some drives together and move the ball into their territory, but we were not able to capitalize on those drives. We think we left a couple of plays out there.
"Defensively, we talked to our kids about key reads. Sometimes they had wondering eyes and were not where they needed to be. We want to improve on our positives and we really want to improve upon our mistakes."
The boys from Hancock County have some good athletes on their roster, and the Wildcats are going to have to be prepared to face them.
"They have a really-athletic quarterback," Collopy said. "They have some really athletic skill people. Their quarterback is dangerous. He is a run-pass threat. They have some good size upfront on their offensive line. Defensively, their ends – their edge guys – are really good. They have a couple nice linebackers. Being on the road presents some different things. It is a different atmosphere.
"We have to continue to improve. I think we have improved every week despite the results. We have to correct our mistakes. We watched film Saturday. We have started to do that. We have to defend the whole field. Offensively, we have to mix it up. They have some really-good athletes."
Edison is a physical group on both sides of the ball.
"They are a young and scrappy team," Hill said. "They are physical. This is the fourth week in a row where we have faced a good running back. Defensively, they like to bring pressure. Offensively, they want to run the football, and they want to control the clock. They want to try and control the ball. They want to sustain drives on offense."
The Red-and-Black want to get the ball into the hands of their playmakers as much as possible.
"They want to establish the run, but they want to get the ball into the hands of their playmakers," Collopy said. "Their quarterback is extremely athletic. We are going to have to know where he is at all time. We are going to know where he is at, but they do some different reads with him. They run quarterback counter. He is dangerous when he gets out of the pocket. He can run and pass.
"Offensively, we are going to have to protect our quarterback. We are going to have to finish our blocks. We are going to have to mix up the run and pass."
The Silver-and-Black have a strong ground game.
"They are a run-heavy team," Hill said. "They will use play-action. They will use some different formations to give themselves an advantage in the run game. We are going to have to stop the run."
Defensively, Weir is not afraid to get after the quarterback.
"They like to bring pressure," Collopy said. "They will mix it up. They have really-good defensive ends. Their defensive ends are able to create pressure by themselves. They are athletic off the edge. They are athletic on both sides of the ball."
The Wildcats are aggressive on the defensive side of the ball.
"They are aggressive," Hill said. "Their defensive line likes to penetrate. They want to play in the backfield. If you are hurting them, they are going to send pressure. It is going to be like there are 13, 14 or 15 guys out on the field. They like to blitz. They will slant. They will move around. "We have talked to our guys at our offensive practice about having their heads on a swivel."
Edison is going to have to be sound on offense and on defense in order to be successful Friday night.
"Offensively, we have to take care of the football, sustain drives and limit penalties," Collopy said. "Defensively, we have to stop the run and tackle the pass. We can't give up any big plays. No matter who you play, they are going to have that one drive. They are going to have a drive, but you cannot give up any big plays. Big plays can change the momentum of the game. They can change the complexion of a game. We have to be sound assignment-wise and with our alignment, and we have to do a good job of communicating."
On the other side, the Red Riders are focused on doing all of the little things right this week.
"We are going to have to do the little things right," Hill said. "This entire season, if we have run 50 offensive plays, on 25 of them we will do the little things right. Then, 10-15 times one guy or two guys won't do the little things right. Then four or five times, we don't do the little things right.
"As a coaching staff, we have to clean those things up. Everyone has to be accountable. Coach (Joe) Petrovich is doing a good job with the offense. We just have to sustain drives. We have drives of six or seven plays where we are moving the ball, and then we will get some penalties and that will put us in a bad spot.
"Defensively, we are going to have to match their aggressiveness. We are going to have to get downhill. If we do those things, I think we will have a competitive game Friday night."
The Wildcats spend a good amount of time working on special teams, and special teams may play a key role in the outcome of this week's game.
"They have a really-good kick returner," Collopy said. "They have a really-good kicker. He kicks off for them, and his kicks are either inside the 10 or at the 10. They haven't really given up many big plays with their special teams. We are more concerned about our special teams than theirs. We are going to have to protect our punter. We are going to have to be assignment sound. Our kick coverage has been good. We did have a breakdown last week and gave up a return, but it was called back. We are going to have toge know what we are doing, and who to block. We are going to have to take the right angles. It is something we have been working on at practice, and we hope it carries over into the game."