By By SCOTT NOVAK / Dowagiac Daily News
Heading into the 2006 season Dowagiac football coach Mike Stanger knew his team had experience and talent.
Stanger, in his fourth season at Dowagiac, wanted his team to improve each week and stay away from injuries.
The Chieftains (2-0) have done both through the first two weeks of the season.
Dowagiac has won on the road and at home. The Chieftains have used their passing game to post a 46-21 victory over South Haven week one and ran over the top of Three Rivers last Friday night in a 25-0 win.
Defensively, the Chieftains have played well in spurts and showed some toughness in Friday night's win over the Wildcats. Dowagiac had a tremendous goal-line stand in the third quarter when Three Rivers reached the 1-yard line.
Dowagiac will need to show improvement in all areas this week when it travels to Vicksburg to take on the Bulldogs, who are 0-2 on the season.
"We go into each week trying to keep our mistakes to a minimum," Stanger said. "We break down the film and prepare to stop the opponent. We try to figure out what plays we need to take away from them. And, we try to figure out how we can exploit their defense."
Vicksburg was defeated by defending conference champion Comstock in the opening week of the season. The Bulldogs dropped a 34-21 decision to Allegan on Friday night.
"They can put some points on the board," Stanger said. "They scored 20 points against Comstock and 21 points last week. We have to be ready defensively."
This will be the fourth meeting between the Chieftains and Bulldogs since 1950. Dowagiac owns a 3-0 record against Vicksburg, including a 13-6 victory over the Bulldogs in their last meeting in 1959.
Dowagiac will get a chance to play on Vicksburg's new artificial turf when it hits the field Friday night. The Chieftains are the first team to play on the new surface.
The Bulldogs are sure to be fired up for their home opener. A team that was voted third in the league behind Dowagiac and Gull Lake, Vicksburg has a little something to prove.
"There is no doubt that they are going to be fired up for this game," Stanger said. "They are going to be hungry because their playoff hopes are on the line. If they lose a third game this early in the season, it's going to be tough to get into the playoffs."
Vicksburg returns 10 starters from a team that finished 5-4 last season.
The Bulldogs lost several close games in 2005, including a 28-27 decision against Plainwell and a 24-22 decision against Three Rivers.
Vicksburg was the only team to defeat Comstock in the regular season – a 31-28 victory.
The Bulldogs return their quarterback Bobby Keller and running backs Joe Cronk and Qylan Palmer. Palmer is the speed back in the Bullddogs' offense.
Vicksburg also has experience and size along the offensive line.
"They have some talent," Stanger remarked. "They are going to run out of the I-formation and we will see some split backs. They run some veer. We feel like we have them scouted pretty well. They don't show a lot of mis-direction. They are coming right at you.
"Defensively it was hard to break them down because their two opponents don't have a lot of plays in common with our offense," Stanger continued. "They play a 5-2 and will put eight guys up in the box. Cronk is their best player on defense, so we are going to have to control him."
Defensively, Stanger said that Vicksburg struggled stopping the pass the first week and then the run against Allegan last Friday night.
Dowagiac comes into the game relatively healthy. Ryan Laylin continues to be game-to-game with a shoulder problem.
"We will probably play Ryan only one way this week," Stanger said. "We will play him at guard."
The Chieftains have not added a ton of new plays to their offense this season, but Stanger said they have put in a few new wrinkles.