The Blytheville Chickasaws (2-2, 1-0) will travel for the first time this season as they make the trip to Jonesboro to face the reigning co-conference champions and undefeated Nettleton Raiders (4-0, 1-0). The Raiders are coached by Steve Hampton who has a 37-22 record at the school.
The Raiders offensive line could cause problems for the Chickasaws, according to Chicks head coach Ben Fisher.
Also, receiver Jaquavious Cain is someone the Chicks will have to keep an eye on.
“They’re humungous. The front five on the offensive line are as big or is bigger than anybody that we will play this year. [Raider linemen Ronnie Bradley and Jay Pigram] are really good. They come off the football. They’re mean. They’re aggressive. We’ve got our work cut out for us this week,” Fisher said. “They got [Cain] that plays tight end, H-Back and slot receiver. He kind of takes you to where the ball is going to be. He’s either going to catch it or block for whoever is running it. We can’t lose him. We have to know where he is at all times. The running back [Nathan Young] is really good. He runs really hard. He fights for extra yards and does a good job at protecting the football.”
Fisher added, “Defensively, they’re extremely fast. They are probably going to be of the fastest teams we’ve faced, as fast as West Memphis. They run a 3-3 stack. Their middle linebacker is really good. He flies to the football. Their secondary is extremely fast and is extremely athletic. They’re big. It’s a daunting test but one that I think we are ready to step up and take the challenge and see what we are made of.”
After several injuries and off the field problems the Chicks will have everyone back.
“Everybody is back,” Fisher explained. “We are still a little banged up. Wynne is a physical team. It doesn’t matter how good they are, they are always physical. We are a little banged up but we will still go play.”
Chicks quarterback Jaheim Carter had a good game last week against the Wynne Yellowjackets. Carter went 8-for-14 passing for 186 yards and three touchdowns. Fisher explained that he has to keep his cool because the team feeds off of his energy.
“We just need him to continue to grow off of that. Just grow off of what he did last week. He’s gotta keep his cool,” Fisher said. “When he keeps his cool, our team keeps their cool and then we all feed off of his energy. We just need him to go out and build off of what he did last week.”
Kickoff between the Chicks and the Raiders is set for 7 p.m. Friday in Jonesboro.