Walnut Coach John Meeks likes his team to play fast. Whether its lining up for an extra point, kickoff team, his defense or his offense. Speed is the great equalizer in high school football.
“All gas,” he said over and over to his players and anyone who would listen. “No brakes”, which could just as easily have been “no breaks” for his opponent from just north of town.
Consider the mission:accomplished.
Walnut used a balaned offensive attack with scores from multiple Wildcats and a dominating defensive performance to beat Middleton 56-13 in front of a packed house on homecoming night.
Spreading the wealth
Walnut used big plays from quarterback Kevin Hurley and Senior running back Wesley Cox to jump out to a 20-0 first quarter lead and it was all downhill from there. Cox has accumulated 8 touchdowns so far this year while both Hurley and Drew Pitney have scored 4, and the balance and distribution on the ground was the offensive story in this game. Couple that with the speed and sure handedness of Kylan Story and Chris Perry and Walnut has a powerful offensive attack that should carry over once their division slate opens.
Constant defensive pressure
If the Walnut offense can best be summarized as balanced and lethal, then the defense can only be described as dominating. With veteran leadership all over the field and big hits the norm, the Wildcat defense has been otherwordly. The unit has only given up 18 points that were not scored in the 4th quarter once the game has already been decided on the year. Big plays from Story (13 tackles, 1 sack) and the stellar play of Rickenta Garth were the sparks of the Wildcat defense against Middleton. The Tigers only managed their two scores late in the contest with a running clock and the game decided.
Walnut travels to Booneville to take on New Site this week.
