Massacre

The big “D” came to play according to Whitley County coach Mike Campbell after his team routed visiting Montgomery County Friday night, 47-0.
At one point in the fourth quarter, Whitley County had held the Indians to a minus 50 yards thanks to the play of its defense led by junior Cody Jeffries who had five sacks on the night.
“I think a lot of that is the effort of our defensive coaches,” Campbell said. “Coach Al has put in a lot ot time. Our kids are starting to believe in themselves defensively. They are starting to fit the defense a lot better. It seems like we do better when people run the ball right at us.”
“The line played better, the linebackers played good and for the most part our defensive backs played well,” added Campbell.
“He’s an athlete, he’s an all-around football player athlete,” said Campbell of Jeffries outstanding defensive game. “Anytime you have a Cody Jeffries on the field, he is going to make something happen.”
The Indians finished the night with minus three yards after Campbell subbed in a number of reserves in the final quarter.
The win ups Whitley County to 2-1 in the district while Montgomery County fell to 0-3. “That’s the most important factor,” Campbell said. “We needed this win.”
“A couple of the seniors made it their goal to win out,” said Campbell. “That is a great goal for us. We played well at times the first half of the season, we’ve played good competition and we know that.”
“We have an opportunity to win against every team we play in the second half of the season,” Campbell added.
The Colonels didn’t have any trouble with winless Montgomery County, scoring three touchdowns in the first quarter to take a 19-0 lead. Whitley County scored on their first five possessions of the game, pushing out to a 34-0 lead at the half.
Senior speedster, Ladale Rider scored the first TD of the game on the first series. The Colonels took the ball at their own 35 yard line and drove down the field in 11 plays capped by Rider’s five yard burst into the end zone with 7:18 on the clock. The big play came on third and five from the Colonels 48 when Rider went to the outside for a 25 yard carry to the Indians 27.
The Indians went three and out and quickly turned the ball back over to Whitley County. With excellent field position at the Colonels’ 47, Eli Rhodes had back to back carries of 10 and eight yards down to the Montgomery 34. A one-yard gain by Rider setup Cody Jeffries 33 yard run to the end zone. Mark Teague’s extra point failed but the Colonels led 13-0 with 3:56 in the first quarter.
Again it was three and out the Indians as Jeffries made back to back hits to running back Caleb Curtis. The Indians were forced to punt with Teague taking the ball at the 39 yard line. He followed his blockers into the end zone for the third touchdown of the quarter. The extra point failed again, but the lead was 19-0 with 1:28 in the quarter.
Things didn’t get any better for the Indians, but the visitors did pick up six yards before facing a fourth and four from their own 19 yard line.
Whitley County took over the ball at midfield and quickly went to work. Jordan McCumbers hit senior Shawn Rowe for a nine yard pass then Rider picked up a first down with a six yard carry to the 35. The Colonels moved the ball down the field in three plays with Rider scoring from three yards out. Jeffries added the conversion and the Colonels led 27-0.
The final touchdown of the half came with 4:48 in the period, on the Colonels next possession when Rider capped an eight-play, 52-yard drive with a one yard plunge over the top of the offensive line for the score.
The Colonels added touchdowns by Rider and Kevin Wells in the second half to account for the final margin.
The Colonels will be on the road this week when they travel north on I-75 to London where they will take on the South Laurel Cardinals. A win would pretty much secure a playoff spot for the Colonels.
“Coach Irwin has done a really good job up there,” said Campbell. “He has his people believing in his system and they have some really nice athletes out. He has some speed and that’s what concerns me more than anything. They have speed at about every position.”
“They were big up front and had the speed last year,” said Campbell. The Colonels lost that home game, 28-14. “We have our work cut out for us.”
“I’ve got to go up there and play hard,” said Campbell. “I think we’ll have opportunities to do things, the best thing we can do is go up there and control the line of scrimmage and move the football up and down the field.”
“They are going to score some points,” said Campbell. “We need to score some points too.”
The Colonels finished the night with 463 yards, 349 yards on the ground and 114 in the air. Rider had 21 carries for 156 yards and four touchdowns while Jeffries had six carries for 68 yards to lead the Colonels.

Montgomery Co. 0 0 0 0- 0
Whitley County 19 15 7 6- 47
First Quarter
WC- Ladale Rider, 5 run (Mark Teague kick)
WC- Cody Jeffries, 33 run (run failed)
WC- Teague, 61 punt return (run failed)
Second Quarter
WC- Rider, 3 run (Jeffries run)
WC- Rider, 1 run (Teague kick)
Third Quarter
WC- Rider, 43 run (Teague kick)
Fourth Quarter
WC- Kevin Wells, 42 pass from Jordan McCumbers (kick failed)