Carson's Chance Smith breaks one last tackle on his way to the end zone during their game against Galena High, Carson High School, Carson City, NV
It figured the Sierra League matchup at Manogue would be challenging enough for the Carson High football team.
Throw in the fact the Miners are likely plenty steamed after last Friday’s reality check in a 63-28 loss to Damonte Ranch and it figures the challenge for the Senators just got that much tougher.
“I would imagine,” said CHS coach Blair Roman about the Miners being ticked off after last week’s loss against Damonte.
But Roman also wants his team to take the fight to a “quality team” in Manogue. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Friday.
“From an on-paper talent perspective, they’re a heavy favorite,” Roman said. “We’ve got a huge challenge in front of us.
“I want to see some fight from the kids. Take a quality team on and see what we can do.”
And Roman said Carson (1-5, 0-1) needs to take advantage of all of its scoring chances against Manogue (3-3, 0-1).
Roman said for the second straight week his team left points on the field. CHS didn’t take advantage of excellent field position three times in a 35-14 loss to Spanish Springs.
Last Friday, the Senators also didn’t completely take advantage offensively in a 24-20 loss to Galena.
“We need to score more than 20 points,” Roman said. “We could have been in the 30-point range last week.”
A strong offensive showing actually seems realistic against Manogue.
The Miners looked like the team to beat in the Northern 4A after opening with an impressive 50-7 win over Reed. But since then, Manogue’s defense has been scorched for more than 60 points twice in a 69-40 loss to Placer and the loss to Damonte.
Manogue’s other loss was a 33-20 defeat to Desert Pines of Las Vegas.
Still, Roman said Manogue’s defense reminds him of the Reed defenses from just a few years ago when the Raiders and Senators were the top two teams in the Northern 4A.
Ernie Howren, who was the coach of those Reed teams, is now Manogue’s coach.
“They’ve got an athletic group,” said Roman about Manogue’s defense. “They want to bring a lot of pressure. They’ve got some nice pieces to move around.”
Roman said an obvious key will be controlling the clock on offense to keep the ball away from the Miners.
“They’re going to move the ball,” said Roman. “We’re going to have to get some stops — and create some turnovers. That’s going to be key.”
Manogue has a “fantastic” running back, Roman said, in Peyton Dixon, who has been putting up ridiculous numbers this season.
Dixon has rushed for 230 yards a game, gaining 1,378 yards on 140 carries for a 9.8 average and has scored 19 touchdowns.
Sophomore quarterback Drew Scolari has completed 45 of 77 passes for 657 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions for the Miners. His favorite target is Dontell Jackson, who has 13 catches for 304 yards for a 23.4 average and four touchdowns.
Manogue’s skill players have been able to put up such ridiculous numbers because of an offensive line that looks like a bunch of human condos. Manogue has seven players on its roster listed at 250 pounds or more, including 315-pound Josh Malafu.
“They’ve got a humongous line that looks like a college line to be honest with you,” Roman said.
Carson will look to control the ball behind the running of Chance Smith and Bradley Maffei. Smith gained 113 yards on 13 carries against Galena and also scored on an 84-yard run.
But CHS will also need an improved passing attack to balance its running game. Against Galena, Carson had several plays in which open receivers were missed.
“We have to complete those plays to be a good offense,” Roman said.