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Despite a tough September of football, the W.F.West Bearcats are heading optimistically into tonight's game with Aberdeen.
The Bearcats, with a 1-2 record, will be hosting the undefeated Bobcats. The two teams' have battled each other much over the years in the BHL, and many expect the atmosphere of a playoff game even though it does not determine either teams standings in their divisions. Aberdeen's head coach Rob Lonborg said, "It's going to be our most physical match-up so far; these are two teams who like to hit each other."
Tough Opponent
The Aberdeen offense is considered formidable by most teams. In their Þrst three games the Bobcats outscored their opponents 138 to 18. They have two running backs with over 100 yards per game. "They have big fast lineman and they create holes for their good running backs," said senior Dave Sund. "Russell Mizen is a young man that has the ability to make big plays," said Lonborg. Mizen is a receiver that many beleive will soon be playing in the Pac-10.
According to Bearcat head coach Ivor Hoglund, Aberdeen's defense will be a big hurdle for the Bearcats. "Defensively, they're extremely sound, so if anybody's going to cause us more grief defensively, it's going to be Aberdeen. They will be the ones who show us what we need to do to improve our offense," said Hoglund.
Senior Aaron Mills agrees. "They have always been strong and consistent," said Mills.
Getting Ready
To level the playing Þeld, the Bearcats will try to neutralize Aberdeen's assets. "We have a base defense that basically covers everything, but initially you've got to take away their best player and their best play. And their best player right now is this Mizen kid. Stop him and you pretty much stop Aberdeen," said Hoglund.
Another element that could work in W.F. West's favor is the new hurry-up offense that the team has been trying out. Designed to confuse the defense, it consists of a series of quick mini-huddles.
Offensive Power
The Bearcats feel that the offense should have more depth than in the past. "You're gonna look at Lann [Olson] and Leonard [Wilson] to carry the bulk of the load, and [Bryan] Erikson, Kojo [Obeng], Justin Peterson and Aaron Mills could break the long one at any time. That's the threat, and that's a nice threat for us to have," said Hoglund.
Olson has 453 rushing yards for the season, and Wilson has 356. "The W.F.West running game is really powerful," said Lonborg. Even with the running game bringing in major yardage, the Cats won't confine the offense to the ground.
Junior Dan Capen said, "Our passing game is a lot better this year, and we'll throw a lot more too. This is just something we can add to our dangerous running game."
Hoglund believes players like Chris Babka, Jason Hewlett, Kyle Williams, Dustin Williams, Jason Smith and Alan Ulrich will be able to secure the line and protect the backfield. "We're pretty pleased. Even though we lost some good veterans, these guys have really picked up where they left off last year, and we've kind of expanded a little," said Hoglund.
In Short
"We're excited about playing Aberdeen, because I think they're going to show us what we need to improve on offensively from their defensive standpoint," said Hoglund in anticipation of tonight's game.
Coach Lonborg was also enthused about the game. "It'll be a real hard-hitting contest with a lot of intensity," said Lonborg.
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