Edison heads to Oak Glen in local showdown

NEW MANCHESTER — The Edison football team is looking for its third straight victory this week against Oak Glen.

After dropping its season-opening game down at Shenandoah (42-40), Edison has bounced back with wins against Cameron (30-22) and Southern Local (42-24).

The Indians led the Wildcats, 12-0, last Thursday out at the Edison Unified Sports Complex before the Wildcats were able to rally for the win.

“We kept playing,” Edison (2-1) head coach Mike Collopy said asked what made the difference after his team was down by 12 points. “We were down 12-0, and we kept playing. We had a really good kickoff scheme, and we executed it. That got us back in the game. That gave us the momentum. It was the turning point in the game.

“We did a better job on defense. We gave up some points and yards, but we did not give up any big plays. I’m proud of our effort.

“The coaching staff did a good job of preparing the kids on both side of the ball. We were prepared.”

This week, the Wildcats will look to continue their winning ways as Edison is scheduled to play Oak Glen at 7 p.n. Friday night on the road.

The Golden Bears enter this week’s game with a record of 0-2. Oak Glen lost its opener at home to Hancock County rival Weir, 41-20, before falling to St. Marys, 28-0, last Friday night on the road.

“Oak Glen likes to run the football,” Collopy said. “They have a really good offensive scheme. They have good personnel. They run the Wing-T.

“We can’t pay attention to what is going on in the backfield. We have to read our keys. We are going to have to be sound with our alignment.

“Defensively, they run different fronts. They are sound on the offensive and defensive lines.

“They have an athletic quarterback. Their backs run hard. They scored points against Weir. We are going to have to be ready to play.”

The Wing-T offense can be difficult to defend.

“There’s so much going on,” Collopy said. “You can’t follow the motion. You have to focus on your keys. You have to trust your keys. You have to get to the football.”

The Golden Bears trailed the Blue Devils, 14-0, at halftime last week before St. Marys tacked on two more touchdowns in the second half to seal the deal.

Oak Glen ran for 133 yards on 33 carries in last week’s loss, while the boys from Hancock County completed 2-of-4 passes for 16 yards.

St. Marys amassed 132 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, while throwing for 149 yards and another score. The first touchdown by the Blue Devils came on a 50-yard fumble return.

Edison has improved throughout the season in all three phases of the game.

“I am really pleased with the kids’ attention to detail,” Collopy said. “They have improved. Our kicking game has improved. We have put in a lot of work. Our return game has improved. Our punt coverage schemes have been solid. Our kicking game has been solid. We have done a good job with our field goals and extra points. Extra points are not easy late in games.

With the Wildcats playing last Thursday, Edison has an extra day to get ready for this week’s game against Oak Glen.

“The coaches were able to scout Friday,” Collopy said. “We brought the kids in Saturday. We are back to our normal playing on Friday routine.

“I’m proud of the way we played. It is not an excuse, but we were under the gun last week. We had a short week against a good opponent. We worked hard to prepare for them.

“The coaches came up with good schemes. You want to keep things simple.

“You can draw things up on the chalkboard, but if your kids don’t understand it or if they don’t go out and perform it, it doesn’t matter. The defense falls on me.

“The kids are working hard. The whole thing is we want to get better, and I think we are getting better. We want to get better every day. The coaching staff wants to get better, and the players want to get better.”

Last season, the Wildcats shut out the Golden Bears, 34-0, in Week 4 at home.