Tigers debut new offense Friday
Published 12:00 am Thursday, May 11, 2006
If you're a fan of the passing game, you're sure to like what will be on display Friday night as the Greenville Tigers entertain the Flying Squadron from Highland Home for their annual spring game.
Both teams run a wide open style of offense that relies heavily on the passing game, and Greenville head coach Bryant Vincent says his bunch is ready for a “war” on the field.
“They wouldn't have come after us and wanted to play this game if they couldn't win,” said Vincent of 2A Highland Home. “This is their year and I look for Friday night to be a war. One thing about it though, we're not going to back down. Laying down and letting people walk on us; those days are over.”
Vincent said he attended Highland Home's inter-squad scrimmage Friday night and said he's got reason to be concerned about the Squadron.
“They're extremely talented and what scares me the most is their quarterback and tailbacks are very good,” he said. “If we miss a tackle, they can go the distance.”
Not so fast says Highland Home head coach Bob Farrior, who said his squad is loaded with young players who are not very good offensively and lack speed.
“We've had what I would call a good spring practice,” said Farrior in his second year as head coach of Highland Home. “We're not very big and have adequate speed and filled with a lot of youth, but we've improved defensively.”
That said, the Flying Squadron, who were 8-4 last year and lost in the first round of the playoffs to Calera, aren't going to come into Greenville carrying a white flag.
“We feel like we have a good nucleus and they might whoop us, but they're not going to whoop us too bad,” Farrior said. “There's going to be an awesome size difference, but we're not going to try to run straight at them either. We're not going to be dumb about it. I think we can hold our own.”
Fans who attend Friday night will see, according to Vincent, the birth of a new tradition for the Tigers.
“We're having our first Tiger Walk and we want fans to show up at 5:30 and line up outside the gate,” he said.
Vincent encouraged fans to come out and see the results of what he, his assistant coaches and players have been working on since spring practice opened 17 days ago and challenged Tiger fans to fill the stands Friday night.
“Championships are not going to happen overnight and maybe not next year, but there is a commitment from me, my assistants, players and the administration to bring this program back to dominance and now we need the commitment from the community,” he said. “I know the fans are wanting old-time Greenville football on the field and we want to see it in the stands too.”
As for Farrior, he said the Squadron is in a no-lose situation.
“If we lose we're supposed to lose and if we win well that's good for us,” he said.
Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. at Tiger Field. Fans are asked to arrive no later than 5:30 p.m.