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Chiefland prepares for physical Class 1A-Rural matchup with Wildwood on Friday night

The Indians and Wildcats are amongst the top teams in Class 1A-Rural, Region 4

CHIEFLAND, FLORIDA- Physicality. Resilience. Assignment football.

It’s the Indian Way.

That’s the way first-year Chiefland head coach James Corbin expects his Indians’ team to play every week out on the field. With one of the top matchups in Class 1A-Rural this Friday versus Wildwood, the Indians will need to bring all three to the table against the Wildcats.

“Physicality and resilience has gotten us this far,” Corbin said. “The most physical football team wins, and so far, we have been that team. We've dealt with weather and injuries throughout the year and this group has been together since they were young, so they have a lot of fight in them.”

Friday’s tilt with Wildwood is one of the top matchups in Class 1A-Rural. 

Friday’s tilt with Wildwood is one of the top matchups in Class 1A-Rural. 

Wildwood (4-1) poses plenty of threats on the offensive side of the football as Corbin points out the Wildcats have trotted out several different quarterbacks from game-to-game.

Vincent Brown Jr. (21-of-46, 237 yards, two touchdowns) and Jamari Dickens (14-of-29, 151 yards, three touchdowns) have been the two primary players at the quarterback position for the Wildcats, with the former leading the team in rushing at 272 yards.

“They have a lot of athletes all over the field and love the pass,” Corbin said about Wildwood. “We've seen three kids play quarterback for them, and expect a fourth to be playing against us. Each quarterback has a unique blend of talents, some are inclined to run the ball and others are really skilled at the pass. They'll be versatile in how they attack us and will force us to play a disciplined game.”

Chiefland (4-0) looks to be up to the task of slowing down the Wildwood offensive attack with one of the top defenses in Class 1A-Rural. The Indians feature defensive back Anthony Blackman (eight tackles, four passes defended), athlete Dakota Fisher (two interceptions) and freshman defensive end Jonathan Adams (five sacks).

On the offensive side of things, Fisher flips over and is the team’s leading rusher with 494 yards and six touchdowns. Senior Clint Thomas has been the Indians’ top pass catcher with 14 receptions for 191 yards and quarterback Michael Tovine (33-of-44 passing, 462 yards, six touchdowns) has played well distributing the football.

“Dakota Fisher, Clint Thomas and Michael Tovine have been some of our biggest weapons on offense so far, but we have an arsenal of kids who can make plays,” Corbin said about his top players on offense.

“Junior Brown and Paul Davis are two bruising backs we like to get involved, and Mike Goodale is a phenomenal tight end. Defensively, Fisher and Davis have also made great contributions, but our biggest x-factor on defense is certainly our defensive ends, Jon and Reggie Adams. Definitely, we have the talent and ability to continue to win as well. It all comes down to the execution.”

Being an assignment team and playing physical are two of the traits Chiefland hangs their proverbial hat on, but also playing more mistake free. The Indians have only committed three turnovers through four games and will have to continue that trend of playing turnover-free football.

It’ll come down to at the end of the day who can control the trenches as each team’s style of play matches one another to a degree. The last time these two clubs met was back in 2020 when the Wildcats edged the Indians 14-10, which Chiefland eventually ended the season at 2-7. If Chiefland can out-muscle Wildwood, it could be well on its way to 5-0 come Friday night.

“The most physical team wins. This is one of, if not the best, matchup in 1A-Rural Friday,” Corbin added. “If we truly want to be as great as we say we do, its time to put those words into action. Hit them in the mouth, take care of your assignment, and protect the football. It’s the Indian Way.”

Andy Villamarzo can be reached at andyvillamarzo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Villamarzo.