Although their game tonight is a non-conference game, it could turn out to be Strong’s most important game of the regular season.
Tonight, the Bulldogs host Brinkley in eight-man play at Jerry Burson Field.
Game time is set for 7 p.m.
The Bulldogs (3-0, 2-0) have matched their best start since 2010 in moving to their new format, posting wins over Hermitage, Episcopal Collegiate and Marvell.
The Tigers (2-2, 2-1), who are the lone representative from the 8-Man North the Bulldogs will see during the regular season, rolled to a 38-0 win over Cedar Ridge last week to snap a two-game losing streak.
Brinkley opened the season with a 44-0 win over Cutter Morning Star, but fell to Rector and Marshall.
So why could tonight’s game prove to be crucial for the Bulldogs?
For coach Sirl Wright and Strong’s staff, tonight marks the first true test where the Bulldogs’ run defense will be tested thanks to Brinkley’s offense.
“They run a split-back offense,” Wright said. “That’s something we haven’t seen yet. We’re focusing on knocking that out as far as what the assignments are because they run a little option and a little veer off of it, so we’ve got to be assignment football. Everybody has got to know their assignments and keep it simple and do your job, don’t do everybody else’s job.”
Running the ball could be even more critical with rain expected to be in the forecast, and Wright said the Bulldogs will have to be disciplined.
“Most teams in eight-man don’t run the two-back set up, and if they do, it’s more of a T-formation,” Wright said. “The split-back is wide and you’ve got to see what both backs are doing at the same time, so you have to have a different set of keys or have a certain guy look at a certain guy so they can tell if a certain offensive formation or concept is coming at them.
“You’ve got to be a little bit smarter with split-back. It’s kind of like Wing-T a little bit. Everybody is crossing and doing different things and if you get trapped watching one thing, they may confuse you, and that’s when they can break a big run on you.”
Regardless of the outcome, seeing the Tigers’ offense up close will help the Bulldogs going forward.
“It helps us set up for Mountain Pine and teams like that because they’re more of a run-oriented team, and Brinkley is more of a run-oriented team,” Wright said.
“So far, we’ve either had a mix or predominantly pass teams that we’ve faced so far, so it’s getting us ready for the grind and if we’re fortunate enough to make the playoffs, it gives you a more varied look, it makes you more well-rounded going into the playoffs.
“You want to see a little bit of everything to get you ready for that and you’ll know how you fare against it when it doesn’t matter.
“When it comes to the playoffs, you win or go home, so you’ve got to be ready for that front. You don’t want to get ready in Week 11 or 12.”
A week ago against Marvell, the Bulldogs pulled away in the second half, and Wright was pleased with how his team responded to adversity.
“We showed a lot of resiliency,” Wright said.
“They hit us in the mouth first, but we bounced back from it and we held serve. From there, we tied it up, we got our bearings back and we just played to our talents and executed. We made less mistakes and held them off.”
If the Bulldogs are to win their fourth straight, Wright said the defense must continue to play well.
“Continue our defensive might,” Wright said. “If we can hold them down to under 10 points and we can execute and do what we have to do, I believe we can win. It always goes back to blocking and tackling.
“Right now, we’re kind of on the small side on the line, so we’ve got to improvise blocking schemes. We’ve got to be creative. That’s what we had to do last week. We’ve got to improvise, play smart and I think we’ll be fine.”