Three keys for Cape Central in district showdown with Farmington

The 2023 campaign has been eerily similar to 2022 for the Cape Central Tigers.

After starting 2-3, the Tigers have reeled off six straight wins, setting up a matchup with the Farmington Knights at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 10, at Cape Central High School.

After defeating St. Mary’s South Side last week, Tigers coach Kent Gibbs spoke highly of his group who will be hosting another Class 5 District 1 title game.

“Second year in a row and I don’t know how many people thought we could do it two years in a row,” Gibbs said. “It’s going to be nice and I hope we get a big home crowd.”

Farmington enters the matchup 7-5 on the season and they look to avenge a 35-0 week 6 loss the Tigers handed them back in September.

Here are three keys that can push Cape Central by Farmington on Friday.

__1.Running Game__

This has been a key all season for the Tigers and it will be once again on Friday night.

In Week 6, Zai’Aire Thomas ran for three touchdowns in the Tigers rout of the Knights and the duo of Thomas and KeyㅤShawn Boyd has seemingly gotten better as the season has progressed.

Adding on to Thomas’ three touchdowns against Farmington, Boyd had two of his own as the pair accounted for all 5 scores for the Tigers.

Following the win, Gibbs has high praise for his running back duo.

““We’re lucky that we have two special running backs,” Gibbs said. “If you stop one of them, the other one’s going to have a decent night.”

__2.Run Defense__

Perhaps the first two could go hand-in-hand and maybe against any other team they would, but not with Farmington.

The Knights are known for running a triple option, something the Tigers had plenty of success defending in the regular season.

Aside from last week’s showdown with St. Mary’s South Side, the best defensive performance of the season for the Tigers very well could have been against Farmington.

“They have a good football team,” Tigers coach Kent Gibbs said. “We finally put it together and played good defense. We aligned properly, and the biggest thing we did differently is we tackled well tonight, and we tackled the ball close to the line of scrimmage. If you do those things on a consistent basis, you’re gonna play good defense.”

For the Tigers to find success on Friday night it will start with their ability to shut down the triple option.

__3.Discipline__

For the past few weeks the only complaint a Tigers fan could have is the amount of penalties the team has taken.

That has caught the eye of Gibbs and his staff and it’s something they’re working diligently to clean up.

Last week was a step in the right direction for Cape Central as following the win over Mehlville, Gibbs knew what his team needed to correct.

“I think we need to be laser focused on finishing our technique so we don’t have those kinds of penalties,” Gibbs said.

Playing a team like Farmington will require discipline because of the way they run the triple option.

“They run it really well,” Gibbs said. “They’re tough physically.

The Tigers will need to toe the line of being physical while not crossing the line and giving the Knights free yards or extending drives.