Rick Patrick
Weeks under the blazing summer sun, grueling conditioning workouts, hours spent making game plans, all come down to this … opening night at Boot Hill Stadium. The Madison County High School (MCHS) Cowboys will begin their 2023 varsity football campaign tonight under Friday night lights.
The Cowboys are facing another challenging schedule, which does not begin with an easy task. The Cowboys will be facing the Patriots of Carrollwood Day School, from Tampa. Last season, the Cowboys opened on the road against Carrollwood in a game that was postponed until Saturday afternoon. In that game, the Cowboys managed to outpace the Patriots in a high-scoring game that ended in a 40-33 Cowboy victory. During that game, the Cowboys tallied 208 rushing yards with five rushing touchdowns. The Cowboys will need to replicate, if not improve on, those numbers if they are going to have success. The Cowboy line on both sides of the ball will have their work cut out for them dealing with a very big Patriot front on both offense and defense.
One thing the Cowboys will have to be mindful of is kickoff coverage. The Patriots should have a potent offense that will be able to put up points. That means the Cowboys can’t afford to fall behind early, due to a big kick-return, especially if that happens on the opening kickoff. At the same time, Cowboy kick returner Varian Terry has shown himself to be a very dangerous weapon in the kick return game. Much of the game’s success could hinge on the result of the opening coin toss.
Like most games, this one will come down to the performance of the offensive and defensive lines. In the contest with Wakulla, the Cowboys showed they have the ability to take control of a contest with their offensive line. They will need to accomplish that and keep up their dominance for 48 minutes if they are going to start this season on a winning note.
The Cowboys will face the Patriots tonight at Boot Hill Stadium, on the MCHS campus. Toe will meet leather at 7:30 p.m.