FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Rebels eye piece of Carolina 1A crown

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on November 10, 2016 2:46 PM

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bcoley@newsargus.com

In the 2016 season, North Duplin has used a rigid defense to break the will of its opponents.

That's been the trend in Calypso. A program that gave up 33.8 points per game two years ago is now allowing only 20.2 -- second-best in the Carolina 1-A Conference.

The lowering statistic has been coupled with a rise in the standings. With a win against Rosewood, North Duplin earns a share of its first conference title since 2007.

ND head coach Hugh Martin attributes the smash-mouth style to the work of defensive coordinator Brad Rhodes and other coaches.

"Coach Rhodes has done a great job getting them prepped up each week and getting the scout work done," Martin said. "The other assistant coaches have been super about teaching a lot of fundamentals things about what we want to do defensively."

Martin added that it helps to have players who love to run and hit a moving target.

Colby Craig and Shmid Romeus lead the team with 6.5 tackles per game. Each player also has six tackles for loss, along with Cody Craig. Eight different players have recorded an interception. Gage Smith leads with four takeaways.

The Rebels will need similar defensive numbers to stop the Eagles' offense, which is fresh off a 52-point performance against Princeton last week.

Rosewood averages 31.5 points per game, which is tied for second-best in the conference. They've had three games of 50 points or more.

"It's just looking at what they do defensively," said Eagles' head coach Robert Britt. "And then preparing an offensive scheme and getting the kids to execute it. So we just have to practice it all week and make sure the kids are prepped up for (tonight)."

Martin said he was impressed with how Rosewood quarterback Cam Helt handled the ball against the Bulldogs.

The three-year starter threw for 231 yards and three TDs while completing 77 percent of his passes. As a runner, Helt tallied 183 yards and two TDs. He averaged 13.1 yards per carry.

"They have a very big offensive line that gets off the ball well," Martin said. "Great skill at quarterback-- he can run it and throw it. The running back has run well, and they have a couple of good receivers. So they're very dynamic."

Martin said his players have been good about putting each game behind them and focusing on the next one. That occurred after losing the first three games of the season, and remained true after every win.

With tonight's matchup having major implications, Martin hopes that mindset -- along with the strong defense -- continues to be a trend.

"We've preached all year that you have to focus on one game at a time," Martin said. "We're just going to be focused on what we can control, which is go out and play the best we can against Rosewood (tonight). Everything else around -- that takes care of itself."