Published: November 02, 2009 08:45 pm      

Tiger Tuesday: ‘Must Win’

The playoffs start a week early for the Tigers

The playoffs start a week early for the Tigers on Friday night, even if it doesn’t end their two-year postseason drought.

Friday’s game against Cleburne is a playoff game. The winner lives to fight another week. The loser will check in the helmets and shoulder pads.

We’ve been guilty of calling a lot of games must wins — Waco University, Ennis, Waco High — but in trust, this is the first “must win” of the season.

“If you want to go on, you have to go out and win in it,” Tigers coach Phil Castles said.

We’ve already learned a lot about these Tigers. They’ve won at No. 3 Waco Midway. They led No. 4 Waxahachie on the road in the fourth quarterback before losing. They lost in overtime at rival Ennis.

“We’ve played some tough teams,” Castles said. “We’ve seen some adversity. We’ve closed a few of them out.”

Midway and ‘Hachie are in the playoffs and will play Friday night for the 16-4A title. I predict Ennis will make the playoffs after beating Waco University on Friday.

I’ll be surprised if the Tigers lose to Cleburne as well as the Yellow Jackets have played this season. The Tigers have proven in six games that, even at 3-3, they are as good as any team in 16-4A.

The one thing holding Corsicana back? As one assistant told me after Waxahachie game, the 2009 Tigers are still trying to get over the “Ghosts of losses past.”

It makes sense. Against the quality opponents last year — Midway, Waxahachie and Waco High — the Tigers were basically out of those games at halftime. Except for Ennis, the Tigers weren’t in a fight against a tough opponent in the fourth quarter now.

The Tigers have been through it now.

A big run by Johnathan Anderson cinched the upset of Midway. Another first down might have taken down Ennis. Getting a do-over on a second-and-four at the 20 against Waxahachie probably gets the Tigers into overtime.

All close games. All pressure games.

There will be a different kind of pressure against Cleburne. One play could be the difference in getting back in the playoffs for the first time since 2006.

It could be covering a kickoff. It could be executing a handoff. It could be filling the correct gap on a running play.

It’s all right there in front of the Tigers.

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Todd Wills may be reached by e-mail at twills@corsicanadailysun.com. Want to “Soundoff” on this story? E-mail: soundoff@corsicanadailysun.com