Cathedral coach wary of Dexter

By Jeff Edwards (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Friday, October 30, 2009

NATCHEZ — When the Cathedral Green Wave take the field tonight, the Dexter team they are facing won’t look anything like the team they defeated 23-0 to open last season.

Instead, it will look much more like the Mount Olive team that defeated the Green Wave 20-6 earlier this month.

And that fact has Cathedral coach Craig Beesley a little worried.

“They are a completely different team this year than last year,” Beesley said. “They probably are one of the most athletic team we’ll play as a whole. They are all very fast and physical. In terms of physicality and quickness they are like Mount Olive.”

Dexter (4-5, 3-2) sits in third place in Region 4-1A, one game ahead of Cathedral (2-6, 2-3).

Dexter’s two losses were 8-0 against Mount Olive two weeks ago, and 7-0 against Sebastopol last week.

Both of those two teams are undefeated in region play.

Beesley said it will be imperative for Cathedral’s defense to stop Dexter’s varied offense.

“They line up in a lot of formations,” Beesley said. “We’re going to have to recognize the formation they are in and keep them from getting big plays. With the athletic ability they have offensively, it’s going to be tough for us to contain them. But we’ve got to keep them away from big plays.”

Beesley would like for Cathedral’s offensive to hit some big plays of its own, but rain in today’s forecast will make that much more difficult.

“Hopefully we’ll hit a big play here and there, but with the weather, it’s going to be a tough night for big plays,” Beesley said. “As long as we take care of the ball we’ll be fine.”

Cathedral quarterback Dylan White enjoyed a fine passing performance last week in a 34-24 win over Bogue Chitto, completing 11-of-14 passes for 169 yards and three touchdowns. But Beesley said those passing stats might not be the same tonight because of the weather.

“Depending on the weather is what we’ll be able to do offensively,” Beesley said. “We’ll try to mix it up as much as possible. If we can throw it, we’ll throw it. We’re preparing on either (throwing or running) with the weather.”

Tonight’s game is an important one for both teams in terms of district standings and the playoffs.

A Dexter win will clinch a playoff spot for the Bulldogs, while a Cathedral win would vault the Green Wave into third place and put them on the precipice of clinching a playoff spot with one game to go.

Beesley said he is proud of his team for responding to a tough overtime loss against St. Aloysius two weeks ago with a big win last week, and hope that momentum carries over to tonight’s game.

“I was worried about them after a tough loss to their rival and sitting there with a 1-6 record,” Beesley said. “I was worried about their mental side, but they came out and played very well last week. We’ve had a good week of practice this week, and it’s homecoming (tonight). Hopefully that will be some extra incentive to play a good game.”