Tiger Gameday – Week 4
Tiger Gameday – Week 4
Last Game: Rocori 15 Hutchinson 14
Game Recap: One late Two point conversion was the difference in the game last week. The Defense was once again the best unit on the field for the Tigers. Hutch held the Spartans to just 100 yards passing, and All Running backs under 50 yards. Offensively, Hutch was just OK. They were able to gain some yards but were turned back on Downs deep on two key drives.
Current Record: 1-2
This Week’s Opponent: Marshall (3-0)
About the Opponent: For the 4th straight week Hutch faces a tough opponent. And as good as Becker has been over the years, this is the opponent I’ve been waiting to see. Marshall was really good last year, and this y ear (On paper anyway), Looks BETTER! They’ve allowed only 7 points in 12 quarters of football. Offensively they’ve been running over teams. This team is the 100% clear favorite in the Section.
Key Hutch Players: Defensive Front. Marshall has scored 116 points combined in the first 3 weeks. If Marshall is allowed to stay on that pace it’ll be a long night. Hutch’s defense has been the strong point this season, so that’s good news. The other good news, is both teams know each other well. Neither is going to fool the other one. So it comes down to execution. Who can execute better?
4 Downs/Storylines:
First Down: Get some Turnovers. So what’s a good way to help out a struggling offense? Give them a short field. Week 1 Hutch had a PLUS turnover ratio and won the game. Week 2 and 3 were negative. It’s not easy to take the ball away vs a good Marshall team, but Turnovers could be very key.
Second Down: Tiger Drives. Another way to slow down a potent offense, is to keep them off the field. Now this year the Hutch offense hasn’t been hitting on all cylinders. Is this the week to break out? Try and control the ball and control the clock. Hutch did complete 11 passes last week…Yes, I just typed that fact…Maybe a nice mix of Run and Pass controls the clock?
Third Down: Keep the score close. Find a way to get some points early will go a long way in this game. But no matter what, you need to keep it within reach. This is not a Hutch team that’s built for comebacks or built to put 40+ on the board. Keep It close to have a chance.
4th Down/Quick Hit Keys: Shout out for keeping the hankies off the field. There was a few penalties last week, but overall in the first 3 weeks Hutch has NOT shot themselves in the foot with penalties much…Nice to see the young kids improving a bit. Improvement will be (to quote Jim Waldron) Critical for this team. One Freshman getting his first varsity start tonight, and another might make his varsity debut for a few snaps…It seems weird to say this on September 19th. But if Marshall beats Hutchinson tonight they will have pretty much wrapped up the #1 seed in the Section. They’ve already beaten Rocori and Willmar. A win tonight Sweeps their section schedule.
