The state’s No. 1-ranked 8-Man football team — the West Central Heat — had their hands full Friday night in their season-opening 42-40 win at Flanagan/Cornell/Woodland. Head coach Jason Kirby said it was both an eye-opening and confidence-restoring victory for his ballclub.
“Flanagan had a great game plan,” Kirby said. “They wanted to hold onto the ball as much as they could, and slow down our tempo.
“They’re physical, they’re seasoned, and they had a lot of kids returning from their team last year.”
Kirby and the rest of the Heat coaching staff are quite happy with the way the team has responded in practice to some of the Week 1 missteps that needed some attention:
“Our guys had a great attitude this week,” Kirby said. “They were nodding to us when we (coaches) said there are a lot of things we can improve on. Everybody realizes we’re going to have to knuckle down and improve on some things.”
Join us this Saturday afternoon on Sunny 97.7 WMOI-FM when the West Central Heat host West Prairie in Stronghurst. The pregame show begins at 12:40 p.m., with the opening kickoff slated for 1 p.m.
