VALDOSTA —
Two weeks ago, the Newton Rams came to Winnersville to play Lowndes. Tonight, the Rams are back in town to play the city’s other public school football team.
Newton (0-2) returns to Winnersville today to face Valdosta (2-1) at 8 p.m. at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium. It will be Valdosta’s Homecoming game.
For the second week in a row, Valdosta will be playing a winless team that has not scored a point all year. Last week, the Wildcats routed Crisp County 45-0, extending the Cougars’ scoreless streak to three games. This week, Valdosta is playing Newton, which has been outscored 63-0 in two games, including a 31-0 loss to Lowndes two weeks ago at Martin Stadium.
But Valdosta’s coach refuses to underestimate the Rams. In fact, he’s impressed with some aspects of their team.
“They are a beautiful football team. (They’ve) got really good looking kids,” Valdosta head coach Rance Gillespie said. “They’ve got two (big) defensive linemen; one of them’s 335 pounds, the other one’s about 285. They’ve got two defensive ends that are about 6-2, about 220. And they’ve got plenty of skill to go along with it, too. They had the 4x100 (relay) team that won the region (track title); that’s in the region with Stephenson and some of those cats that can really run. (The relay runners) are skill guys on the football team. They’re big and athletic and can really move around.”
Gillespie also says that Newton should have some key players coming back from injuries tonight.
“They’ve had about three or four injuries, and according to their coach (Cortez Allen), those guys are going to be back for our game. They’ll be at their best for us,” he said.
The Rams run a multiple offense. They will run the spread some times and go with a power running set at other times.
“They do a little bit of everything. They’ve got an athletic quarterback. They’ve got a couple of guys that they can throw it up to who can go get it,” Gillespie said. “They’ve moved the football offensively. For one reason or another, they (haven’t been) able to finish a couple of drives, whether it be (because of) a penalty or whatever.”
Defensively, the Rams like to use an under front, and often put eight players in the box.
“Defensively, they’ve played well at times and given some people fits. And at times they’ve given up some big plays,” Gillespie said.
Newton’s defense will try to slow down Valdosta’s running game. Nelson Herring has rushed for 386 yards and five touchdowns in three games, while Malcolm Joseph has run for 262 yards and four touchdowns. And No. 3 running back Tim McClain has added 125 yards and a touchdown.
Valdosta quarterback Shelby Wilkes has thrown for 425 yards and four touchdowns this season. Joseph is his leading receiver, with 13 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown. Taijuan Smith (four catches, 94 yards) is second on the team in receiving.
What does Gillespie believe the Wildcats must do to beat Newton tonight?
“Certainly, we need to come out and be ready to play. If we do that, we’ll be OK. If we don’t, and we let those guys hang around, or they come out and they make a couple of plays against you, it could be a dogfight. They’re totally capable,” Valdosta’s coach said. “We need to keep getting better. We need to continue to execute some of our stuff and eliminate some of the mistakes we’ve made. Defensively, we can’t allow any big plays. They’re totally capable of big plays.”
Gillespie says that although a few Valdosta players are a little banged up, all of the team’s starters should be able to play tonight.
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Related Photos
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Malcolm Joseph (1) and the Valdosta Wildcats host Newton at 8 p.m. at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium. Joseph has rushed for 262 yards and four touchdowns this season. Paul Leavy | Special to the Times
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