Michael Pineda
MARLOW — MARLOW — This is not where the Marlow football team wanted to be.
Following Friday night’s loss to Bethany, the Outlaws are the owners of an 0-2 record in District 3A-2. The frustrating part of it all? Marlow could be 2-0. But horseshoes and hand grenades aside, there is only the future to look toward and, this week, the Outlaws have an opponent perfect for curing all ills, the slumpbuster known as Northeast Academy.
Northeast, whose season was in doubt entering the fall, is 0-5 on the season and has scored only 12 points while giving up 251. Based on the disparity between the two teams this Friday, the focus will be not on whether Marlow wins its homecoming, but how it looks in picking up the win.
“I feel like we should have beat Pauls Valley and Bethany,” Marlow coach Barry Foster said. “Against Pauls Valley, we gave up too many big plays and against Bethany, we turned the ball over. But that is part of the game. People need to start giving us stuff. We’re being too nice, trying to be Miss Congeniality of the district.”
The Outlaws had four turnovers in the loss to the Bronchos, three on interceptions. And that was not the only problems the team had.
“We had too many turnovers and mental mistakes and you can’t do that against good teams,” Foster said. “Sometimes you think they are thinking too much and then they miss an open block.
“I really expected to be 4-1 at this point. Our goal is to make the playoffs and we would like to host a game, but we need to make the playoffs.”
The ideal scenario that places Marlow in the playoff would be for the team to win out. The problem is that the road is challenging. The Outlaws face Top 10 teams in Purcell and Madill. Add to the mix a Dickson and Lone Grove team that are good enough to win on any given Friday night, and the task is uphill.
The good news for Marlow is that it feels it matches up well with Purcell. Madill is a spread team, the kind that has given the Outlaws problems, but may not have the same type of athletes that Pauls Valley and Bethany have boasted.
One key for the Outlaws as they prepare for the stretch run will be to get over some nicks and bruises. Running back Chris Walden had his bell rung and missed most of the second half, and wide receiver Drew Wortham suffered a hamstring injury and missed the fourth quarter of the game against Bethany.
