Second and final scrimmages set for this week

Dyer County Assistant Coach Chase Joy puts linemen through the shoot drill during practice earlier this week as the Choctaws prepared to travel to Jackson on Thursday. The orange and white will face Jackson Christian School in their second scrimmage of the preseason.

Photo/Jason Peevyhouse

By JASON PEEVYHOUSE

Sports Editor

With the start of the 2024 TSSAA regular season approaching in just over two weeks, teams from Dyer County and Dyersburg will wrap up their scrimmage schedule to close the week as both will be on the road.

Dyersburg Assistant Coach Bobby Ellis goes over defensive strategy with Trojan players as the team prepared to travel to Milan on Friday evening for the team’s second scrimmage of the preseason.

Photo/Jason Peevyhouse

Dyer County will get their work in a day ahead of most teams as the Choctaws will travel to Jackson to take on Jackson Christian School on Thursday evening.

Choctaw Head Coach David Whittle said he wants to see his team get more experience as well as more depth during their final scrimmage of the preseason with the Eagles.

“That's the big thing – find some more guys that can actually play,” Whittle explained. “Get them some experience and get guys ready for the football season.”

Whittle said he believes JCS will give the Choctaws a challenge up front on both sides of the ball.

“I think they will give us fits up front, offensively and defensively,” the Choctaw head coach said. “We need to be pushed their and I think they will.”

In addition to keeping the roster healthy through the second scrimmage, Whittle added the biggest goal is to see improvement in his team.

“I want to see us create some turnovers defensively,” Whittle added. “And, cut down on silly penalties. We had too many false starts last week.”

The Choctaws' scrimmage at JCS is set to begin at 7 p.m.

Dyer County will close out the preseason on Friday, Aug. 16 when the Choctaws make the short trip over to Dyersburg to take on Lake County in the annual STAR Physical Therapy-West Tennessee Bone and Joint Clinic High School Football Jamboree. The Choctaw open the regular season at home on Aug. 23 when they take on Dyersburg.

The following evening, Dyersburg wraps up its scrimmage slate when the Trojans travel to Milan to take on Friday to take on the Bulldogs in the Trojans' second and final scrimmage of 2024.

Dyersburg Head Coach Bart Stowe the main thing his team wants to do is improve from this past Friday evening's scrimmage with Lexington.

“We want to show improvement offensively, defensively, and probably do some more things with special teams,” Stowe explained. “We want to see improvement on our ball handling, ball security, blocking, pad level, and, defensively, our alignment, assignments, and tackling.”

The Trojan head coach said Milan is an athletic program which always creates challenges for opponents.

“They've got a good ball club coming back with several players returning,” Stowe explained. “They've got a new coach so there's a lot of excitement around there.

“But, there's always excitement with Milan football. They're a good, quality opponent. That's why we wanted to scrimmage them.”

Last week's scrimmage with Lexington was originally scheduled for the Tigers home field but was moved to Dyersburg midweek. With six road games on the 2024 docket, Stowe talked about the importance of learning how to play on the road.

“I always believe in road scrimmages because there's a lot to be learned,” Stowe said. “Getting your gear there, making sure you don't forget something in your locker, and learning how to compete in another environment.

“We practice at home all the time so we're used to our environment. This year, we've got several road games so an away scrimmage is very important to get used to playing away from home.”

Dyersburg's scrimmage with Milan is set for start time of 5 p.m. with freshman action and the varsity squads will take the field at 6 p.m.

The Trojans will wrap up the preseason on Aug. 17 when Dyersburg hosts the annual J.C. Sawyers Stadium for the annual STAR Physical Therapy-West Tennessee Bone and Joint Clinic High School Football Jamboree. Dyersburg closes out that night when the Trojans take on Obion County in the fourth and final matchup of the evening. The Trojans will begin the season with a three-game road trip which sees Dyersburg travel to Dyer County on Aug. 23 for the season opener with the Choctaws.