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Highlands Today

Dragons All Set To Butt Heads With Golden Rams

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By MARK PINSON Highlands Today

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 5, 2008

LAKE PLACID - Last week's preseason game against Liberty gave first-year Lake Placid football coach Jason Holden an opportunity to see his players perform under pressure.

The 33-7 loss to the Chargers showed Holden and his staff that much work needs to be done to mold the Green Dragons into a competitive squad.

"We had a great week of practice that emphasized a lot of tackling drills," Holden said. "We did not tackle well against Liberty, and we've got to do a better job of bringing the ball carrier down.

"We also worked with our backs on hitting the hole quicker, getting their shoulders square and getting up the field."
Lake Placid faces a daunting task when it hits the road tonight for its season opener at John Carroll of Fort Pierce.

John Carroll, which leads the series 7-5-1, won its preseason game and the Golden Rams knocked off the Green Dragons by a score of 34-7 last year.

"John Carroll is a good team and has good size on its offensive and defensive lines," Holden said.

The Golden Rams will run out of a double-wing and will also use a spread formation on offense.

"They run a lot of misdirection and their backs are big, strong kids that run hard," Holden said. "We've got to read our keys, stay in our lanes and tackle well.

"If we stop moving our feet and try to arm tackle, we'll be in for a long night."
Lake Placid will counter with its own running game led by senior tailback Chevontray Wilson and junior fullback Navahri Holden.

Wilson paced the Lake Placid offense last week with 69 yards, while Holden added 22 yards, including a five-yard TD run.

"Our offensive line did a much better job of getting off the ball in practice and we're going to have to do that if we want to move the ball consistently against a good-sized defensive line," the first-year Lake Placid coach said.

"We need to stay low, fire out and stay with our blocks to create some running room for our backs."

Lake Placid, which dressed 27 players last week, is fairly healthy for tonight's opener against the Golden Rams.

"We've got one player that may miss the game," Holden said. "Everyone else is ready to go."

Starting the game off on a good note is important for the Green Dragons' confidence, according to the LP coach.

"It would be a huge confidence boost if we could get off to a good start and get some momentum," Holden said. "It's the first game of the year and we're excited about competing."
Green Dragons vs. Golden Rams
at John Carroll High School, Fort Pierce
TONIGHT at 7:30

COST $5

Mark Pinson can be reached at 863-386-5837 or mpinson@highlandstoday.com.

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