A year ago at this time, Dale Pruitt was trying to find an identity for his Marion County football team, one that took weeks to finally unveil itself.
Thursday night at the Best of Preps Jamboree at Finley Stadium, Pruitt’s Warriors looked like a team that knows what it can do well.
Marion leaned on its sizable offensive line to put up 27 points in exhibition wins over East Ridge and Sale Creek, and while the big boys had their way up front, the Warriors showed serious depth in the backfield even as they played without preseason all-state running back Taye Hutchins, who is banged up.
“We came off the football well and executed our offense well,” the second-year Marion County coach said of his run-heavy attack. “Our offense is kind of unique and most people don’t see it every day, and I realize if people have a week to prepare for it things might be a little different, but tonight I am tickled to death.”
After blanking Sale Creek 14-0 in their first 20-minute scrimmage as Rylee Rogers and Alex Condra scored touchdowns, the Warriors had two big plays to get past East Ridge, 13-0. Condra connected with Rogers for a 72-yard touchdown pass, a short screen that went the distance on the team’s first offensive play. Moments later, freshman Sam Pickett ripped off a 60-yard scoring run.