BGA Travels to Maury Co Friday, Hoping for 3-1

Williamson County Football
By: Nora Scott
The Battle Ground Academy Wildcats will travel to Maury County on Friday the 13th to take on the winless Mt. Pleasant Tigers. The Wildcats could move to 3-1 with a win on Friday.

BGA won their game last Friday against Goodpasture Christian 35-14, while Mt. Pleasant will be coming off a 34-22 loss to Columbia Academy. Friday’s game should be an easy win for the Wildcats as long as they can execute 45 minutes from home.

Battle Ground’s rushing and passing offenses have both been very effective so far this season with an average of 31.3 points per game, and they should be able to continue this success against Mt. Pleasant. Beathard, BGA’s quarterback, has been a key player because of the double threat he poses. He had three touchdowns on the ground and ran for 64 yards, making him the lead rusher, in addition to throwing 164 yards against Goodpasture.

The BGA defense has done a good job of keeping the opposing teams’ scores low, but they really stepped up last Friday by forcing three fumbles and intercepting three passes. If they can continue to get the ball back into the offense’s hands as much as possible, the Wildcats should be nearly unstoppable.

The Wildcat defense does, however, have room for improvement when it comes to preventing big plays. In their last two games, Battle Ground has allowed two touchdown runs for over 70 yards. These types of runs have a wider effect on games than just the quick points that they give opposing teams because they cause major momentum shifts. Giving up big plays deflates the players and gets the wrong fans cheering. If they can’t maintain momentum and continue to give up quick, easy points, it won’t matter how many fumbles the defense forces.

So far it seems like the division move BGA made this season was a good decision for the football team, but they can’t underestimate the importance of the seemingly easy games like the one against Mt. Pleasant. The Lions will be ready to play hard and eager for their first win of the season, so they could possibly pose more of a threat than the stats would suggest.

Kickoff is at 7 PM at Mt. Pleasant.