Pinckneyville 0-1 at West Frankfort 0-1

by Steve Dunford

The Redbirds opened the 2017 campaign with a 43-18 loss to the Anna-Jonesboro Wildcats.  The Redbirds are very young with mainly sophomores and juniors in the skill positions.  They did not have an answer for Jayce Turner, who rushed for 200 yards.

Here is what West Frankfort Coach Brian Beery had to say about tonight’s matchup with the Panthers.   “Pinckneyville has a lot of size and their running backs have great speed. They run a spread offense and try to spread the defense out to cover the entire field. Running the ball is what they are best at, but also have an efficient passing game.

Their defense is lead by their two inside and two outside linebackers. They are big, strong kids, that have a nose for the football. In order for us to be successful our defense will have to play a very physical game, and contain Pinckneyville’s speed. Offensively, we will have to do a better job of taking care of the football, take what Pinckneyville’s defense gives us, and get off to a quick start.

Pinckneyville  fell to Red Bud last week 21-7 in their opener.

This young Redbird team showed last week how explosive they could be.  They scored two TD’s and was deep in the Anna-Jonesboro end zone in the closing seconds of the first half.

They ended their long losing streak last year on the turf in Perry County, against the Panthers.  I just have a good feeling about tonight.  They played a much cleaner game after the first quarter last week.  This might be a team that will have growing pains at times, but were successful at the lower levels.  I am going with the Redbirds by 3, especially at home.

As far as the SIRR Ohio, I feel that Harrisburg established early they are the team to beat, after upsetting Mt. Carmel in week one.  I will be keeping a close eye on A-J and Murphysboro, and Herrin-Carterville to night to see how things might stack up in the conference.

If you can’t make it to tonight’s game please tune into Rick Westemeyer and Michael Marlo on WFRX 95.5 FM/1300 AM “The Fan”