On Friday the Pulaski County Cougars return to action fresh off their bye week as they host the undefeated William Fleming Colonels. This game will mark the second straight outing against a AAA team from the Western Valley District for the Cougars. If Pulaski County (2-1) wants to extend their modest winning streak to two games, they will have to play their best game of the season to date, against a very athletic and physical Fleming squad.

Head coach Jack Turner believes the bye week came at a very good time for the Cougars following their win over Patrick Henry two weeks ago. In the game against the Patriots, the coaching staff played many new faces, creating quality depth just in time for a difficult stretch of games over the next month. With the two weeks to prepare for William Fleming, the staff feels as if there was a lot accomplished in practice and certainly a lot of coaching had to be done. Plus, the team got healthier and for the first time since the start of August practices, the Cougars are able to line up with a projected team intact.

The Colonels (3-0) come to Dublin fresh off their 35-18 victory over E.C. Glass last Saturday afternoon. Running back Devin Richardson paced Fleming’s win, scoring three touchdowns while rushing for 143 yards. Devin Dean added 103 yards as the Colonels dominated up front, running for a total of 305 yards as the Hilltoppers were overmatched throughout the game.

This will mark the second straight game that Pulaski County will have to defend the spread offense but Fleming’s version will have a different look than what Patrick Henry brought to town. What Cougar fans will see on Friday will resemble what the West Virginia Mountaineers run on Saturday’s in Morgantown. And while head coach Rob Senseney will make the defense defend the entire field, it is clear that his Colonels want to run the football, creating avenues for his dual quarterbacks in the passing attack.

For Pulaski County, their own offense has been quite efficient through their first three games led by senior quarterback Luke Watson. Two weeks ago in the 35-26 victory over Patrick Henry, the offense piled up 349 yards on the ground for an average of 7.6 yards per carry. Randall and Ramell Cobbs each ran for over 100 yards, while Watson added 53 yards on only five carries. Where the Cougars have struggled has been in the interior of the defense, where Pulaski County is fielding one of the smallest front lines in the program’s history.

But through the efforts of the coaching staff, those areas of concern have been dealt with during these last two weeks preparing for the Colonels. Coach Turner has worked very hard with his assistants tweaking rotations and allowing more competition for playing time than in years past when depth was not such a concern. And while it will be a huge challenge for the Cardinal and Gold, Cougar fans can rest assured that their team will be ready to go Friday night for William Fleming.

This game will mark the first meeting between the two schools since 2006, a 20-14 victory by William Fleming. The Colonels have won the last two contests in the series but Pulaski County leads the overall victory count 19-14.

If you cannot make it out to the game Friday night, you can follow the Cougars on 107 Country PSK (107.1 FM) and on-line at (WPSK107.com).