NMCC-Bluff is SATURDAY

Following the death of a teammate during preseason training, the New Madrid County Central football team is ready to take the next step in the healing process.

The Eagles open the season Saturday night against the Poplar Bluff Mules at Morrow Stadium.

"We're looking forward to playing," Central coach Arlen Pixley said. "We're going to base this early-season improvement on how we improve from play to play and from quarter to quarter."

Pixley and his team have been taking things a step at a time since Aug. 12 when junior Raymond Tindle collapsed during morning practice. The cause of death has not been determined.

"What happens with this process is you go through the first stage which is some kids feel numb, some kids feel anger, some kids feel very sad," Pixley said. "The second part of that is where we're at right now, where everybody kind of goes into a daze.

"We can't focus throughout a whole practice right now."

Central went through a similar process three years ago when Brad Colbert, a senior captain, was killed in a traffic accident. Tindle had just joined the team this year along with his brother, Larry, who has not returned to practice, Pixley said, adding "we want him to be apart of our program somehow."

Over the last 17 days, the focus has slowly returned to football.

"It's a driving point for us," he added. "We really have to fight not to dwell on it."

Once the Eagles returned to workouts, they were required by MSHSAA to fit in the remaining practices before the season opener. An athlete must participate in 14 days of conditioning workouts before they can compete. In order to comply, Central had 12 straight days of practices and did not play in the preseason jamboree last week while the game at Poplar Bluff was pushed back a day. The Eagles' final required practice will be today.

"We're ready to play," Pixley said. "It's not going to be as polished as we would like it to be at this point."

Central, which opened the season ranked sixth in the state poll for Class 3, also will be without returning quarterback Dontre Jenkins. The senior, who threw for over 1,000 yards last season, suffered a broken foot and was one of seven defensive starters and six on offense from a team that was 10-3 and reached the state quarterfinal.

Pixley named freshman Corey Guest the starting quarterback while Mules coach Shane Kearbey went with senior Zach McAnulty as starting quarterback.

"Mac's a heck of a leader," Kearbey said. "He's a guy that can get in the huddle and command it."

Kearbey said the three-way competition for the starting QB job was really tight at the start of the summer. McAnulty threw for two touchdowns in his only varsity start last year to rally the Mules from an early 14-0 deficit.

"As the summer kind of unfolded and we got into two-a-days, he just kind of stepped up and started shinning," Kearbey added.

Both teams return potentent backfields in Central's G'Darius Stevenson and Bluff's Zach Ferguson who each rushed for over 1,000 yards last season. While the Eagles return three offensive linemen in seniors Michael Darter (5-foot-11, 235 pounds), Thorne Smith (5-11, 210) and Jacob Kimball (6-1, 215), the Mules only return senior Ward Watts to the line.

Central senior Kony Ealy (6-5, 230) returns at tight end and defensive end. He already has offers to play next fall at schools in the Big 12, Big Ten and SEC. In the game last year, Ealy scored on a 44-yard pass but the Eagles turned the ball over four times as Poplar Bluff rallied from a 16-0 halftime deficit.

"He's a D-I kid," Kearbey said. "You've got to definitly plan (for him) in the gamplan but without film we really don't know how they're going to use him."

Both coaches said they had little information about the other team and were more focused on their own players.

"I like the way we're flying around the field," Pixley said. "I'm a little disapointed in the mental lapses we've had in practice but I can understand."