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Mustangs will meet Swain in home opener on Friday
Fresh off its first season-opening win since 1999, Smoky Mountain’s football team will play at home Friday when Swain visits Carr Hooper Stadium/Babe Howell Field for a 7:30 p.m. game.
The Maroon Devils have a new offensive look this year, according to SM’s Dale Galloway, who will be coaching his first home game Friday.
“Swain has gone to a shotgun based offense,” Galloway said. “They’re still committed to running the football. They have good size up front at several positions. They just run hard. It’s a different style of back from the speed we saw at Hendersonville.”
Cory Hipp is quarterback for Swain’s new offense. In Friday’s 44-15 loss to Tennessee powerhouse Morristown West, Hipp completed nine of 14 passes for 142 yards.
The Devils use a 3-5 defense, Galloway said.
“We’ve got to play with the same kind of enthusiasm we had Friday at Hendersonville,” the coach said. “I felt Friday was a testimonial to summer conditioning.”
The Mustangs hold a 9-8-1 edge in the series, but Swain has won three straight, including 19-0 last year.
“I think we can make it a tight ball game and have a chance to be in there and be in the hunt for it,” Galloway said.
Playing at home for the first time will be special for the players, according to Galloway.
“I certainly hope everyone comes out,” he said. “The kids are extremely excited. They would be that way if there was a sole in the stands or not, but it makes a big difference when a big crowd is behind you yelling and screaming.”
Friday’s 21-13 win at Hendersonville was due in large part to the Mustangs’ special teams.
“It wasn’t just the kicks,” Galloway said. “Grant (Schallock) had a great game punting and we had good coverage by the punt and kickoff teams. They had 0 yards returning punts. It was a good night for our kicking game.”
Rather than punting, the Bearcats kicked from field goal formation each time they faced fourth down.
“I knew the rule existed, but I was real surprised they were at a point where they had to do it regardless of field position,” Galloway said.
After finishing last year with eight straight losses, picking up a win was important for the Mustangs.
“It was a great way to start the year,” the coach said. “We felt we had been making steady improvement throughout the summer. I feel we’re getting much better defensively. Offensively, it’s a slower process. Had we played well, were competitive and didn’t win, that would have been real hard on the kids. We needed to win.”
While Hendersonville had a 266-127 advantage in total offense, Galloway noted 171 of the yards came on three plays, including two touchdowns.
“Our style of defensive play is high risk and high reward,” Galloway said. “We want to stay aggressive. If you get caught making a mistake, a good team will make you pay for it.”
Throughout the preseason, Galloway has said the defense was ahead of the offense. That was also the case Friday.
“Offensively, we know where we’re at, and it’s not where we want to be,” he said. “We want the clock in our favor. That comes with keeping our blocks just a little bit longer. We were pretty efficient with the passing game. The important thing was no interceptions. We did what we needed to do. We tried our best to manage the game. We got great field position two times, and we scored on both.”
Injuries were not a factor heading into the week of practice for the Swain game.
“We came through fairly well,” Galloway said. “Winning seems to make you feel a little better.”
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