Don’t allow any big plays. Make them earn every yard they
get.
Gilroy – Don’t allow any big plays. Make them earn every yard they get.
Those have been the Gilroy coaching staff’s points of emphasis all this week through practice as the Mustangs prepared for tonight’s game against Oakland Tech (2-1).
“If they’re going to score, it’s going to be by slowly driving the ball down the field,” said Gilroy head coach Darren Yafai. “It’s disheartening when you stuff the run and they pop a trick play or a long pass.”
That’s a lesson the Mustangs learned the hard way last Saturday against San Lorenzo Valley, who handed Gilroy its first loss of the season in a down-to-the-wire 41-40 showdown. The ‘Stangs held the Cougars to 84 yards of rushing. With a stat like that, Yafai said, “You should win the football game.”
But the ‘Stangs didn’t contain the big passing plays.
Last week, Gilroy’s defense tried to shut down SLV star wide receiver Matty Kiel. This week, the defense will be focused on stopping Tech’s talented 6-foot-3, 210-pound quarterback Anthony McCrady, a highly-recruited senior considered to be among the best signal-callers in the Bay Area.
“He is the best football player on the team,” Yafai said. “He wants to throw the ball first…But he has no problem tucking the ball and running. And when he does, it’s scary.”
Oakland Tech also has some athletic and imposing receivers in the 6-foot to 6-foot-2 range to go along with McCrady’s passing game.
“Their receivers are big, tall and fast and can go up and catch the ball,” Yafai said.
Oakland’s aggressive defensive style could end up being a positive for Gilroy, if it doesn’t frazzle the Mustangs first. The Bulldogs like to blitz, which could help out Gilroy’s running game and open things up for Justin Sweeney, who rushed for nearly 300 yards against a big SLV team.
Last week, the ‘Stangs played a sloppy first half of football, which Yafai partly blamed on a week of lackadaisical football. This week of practice was better, he said, but not a complete turnaround.
“We were hurting afterward,” Yafai said. “But sometimes you still don’t always have that discipline or focus. We still had some lapses.”
Still, after Thursday’s practice offensive coordinator Tim Pierleoni offered a reminder about how last year’s team responded to its first season loss: A historic win at Palma.
Kickoff for the varsity game is at 7:30pm at Garcia-Elder Sports Complex.
