COVID-19 has hit the Pioneers hard this week. At least six players have tested positive.

Injuries have also had an impact, but make no mistake, COVID-19 is the main reason the Pioneers will have several new players in the starting lineup. As head coach Matt Turner said, “COVID has been our biggest enemy all season. It is not Siegel or Coffee County. COVID has been our enemy, right here at home.”

The Pioneer coaching staff has been shuffling players on the offensive and defensive lines. Friday night’s game against Coffee County in Manchester is a gut-check game. If Warren County wins, the Pioneers will be guaranteed a playoff spot. Coffee County wants to win to stay alive in the playoff hunt.

COVID protocols cancelled the Pioneers first three games, none of which were region games. This will be Warren County’s fourth game they have played of the season, and Coffee County will be playing its seventh game. 

Warren County is 1-0 in the region, and Coffee County is 0-2 in the region. You don’t have to be a mathematician to understand a win is very important to both teams.

COFFEE COUNTY

The Red Raiders (2-4) overall, will have only one region game left after playing Warren County, which will be against Cookeville on Oct. 15. Coffee County head coach Doug Greene said, “We have several goals. Going to the playoffs is one and we want to have a winning season. This game is very important to us.”

Coffee County has a balanced offense. Statistically, the Red Raiders have actually thrown for about 200 more yards than they have rushing. 

The Red Raiders had only four returning starters on offense, and only one returning starter on defense. Similar to Warren County, this has been a rebuilding year for Coffee County, which played a lot of tough teams in the first part of their season. 

Tullahoma was their second opponent, and then they played Shelbyville, Page and Lebanon. Those four team are the Red Raiders four losses. Their two wins have been against Franklin County and Spring Hill.

Having played six games has given an inexperienced Coffee County team time to mature. Coach Greene who is his third year as head coach said, “We have gotten better as the season has progressed. We have gotten stronger in the weight room over the past three years. We have less injuries, break more tackles, and we have a stronger line.”

Coach Greene described his outlook on the game against Warren County. “It will be a physical football game. It was physical last year and Coffee and Warren County have a long history against each other. Offensively we are balanced, and we are at the point now that we are comfortable throwing on all downs. Every play works on the board. We will get in the game and see what works best for us. You want to do what you do, but we will try to find a chink in their armor and exploit it.”

Coffee County will be running the same offense as last year – the spread. No. 22, junior Conner Heaton is their go-to running back, and Heaton had 252 yards last week against Spring Hill. 

Defensively, Coffee County will run the same defense they ran last year – a 3-4 alignment. Their big player on defense is No. 45, sophomore Jacob Barlow. Coach Greene said Barlow has accumulated a significant number of sacks and led the state in sacks at one point.

WARREN COUNTY

Junior standout lineman Dayton Jernigan is lost for the season. Jernigan will have ACL surgery later in October. There will be some shifting on the line and changes to fill holes that have been created by Dayton’s injuries and COVID. 

Freshman Xander McCormick will start at center, and his brother, Chandler McCormick, will shift to tackle. Mark Bouldin will move to right guard, and Zach Luck will be starting at the other tackle.

Coach Turner told his team at the end of practice Wednesday, “If we play as hard as we can, for as long as we can, that is all we can do. No matter what is on the scoreboard, if we do that, we will be OK. That is all that matters, win, lose or draw.” 

But make no mistake, Turner believes Warren County can win this game. Turner said, “We want to win and control our own destiny. We set goals to be region champs. In the locker room, this is a game for the region championship.”

Last year, Coffee County was effective at stopping Warren County’s rushing attack. Turner expects the Red Raiders to mount a similar defense, which will challenge Warren County to be very physical. Pioneer fans can expect to see Warren County create power rushing formations that have been successful this season. 

Nate Elrod will be the starting quarterback, and the coaching staff hopes Jaythan Pleasant will be ready to play. Coach Turner said they may have pulled Pleasant early in the Siegel game to preserve him for the region game this week against Coffee County. Pleasant has been a sparkplug and creative runner for the Pioneers. Having Pleasant will make a big difference for the Pioneer offense.

Coach Turner summed up his deepest feelings about the game against rival Coffee County. Turner said, “I told our team that a life without adversity is not a life worth living. This kids are growing. They are stepping up to the challenge, and I believe they will step up to the big challenge that is facing us this Friday night. This is a gut-check game. This is Friday night football. I told them that they are the author of their own story for Squad53. This is a great opportunity for them to write a heck of a story -- to go down there with all the odds stacked against them and preform. And that is all I am looking for them to do is to perform.”