Vandals Address Injuries As Team Prepares For Mineola

Coaches point out that injuries are a part of the game of football and for the Van Vandals in 2008, they have had their share of bad news on that front.

The injury news did not get any better last Friday night as the Vandals lost two more starters during their District 14-3A opener at home against the Kemp Yellowjackets.

Senior Blake Pennington, who started at wide receiver and defensive back in addition to handling all of the punting and kicking duties, suffered a potentially season-ending torn knee ligament injury on the first play from scrimmage against Kemp.

"There is a possibility that after wearing a brace for a couple of weeks that he could return for kicking duties only but we will just have to wait and see on that," said Vandal head coach Brady Pennington.

Another senior, starting linebacker and receiver Clayton Kendrick suffered a sprained knee against Kemp and is expected to be out of action for two to three weeks, according to the Vandal head coach.

"We hope Clayton can come back in time for the Canton game on October 31," said Brady Pennington.

Running back Michael Terry, who played sparingly with a high ankle sprain against Kemp, is not fully healed and his status is "week to week, " according to Brady Pennington.

Despite the disappointing injury news, the Vandals are preparing for an important District 14-3A contest against the Mineola Yellowjackets Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Mineola.

"This is a team sport," emphasized Brady Pennington. "There are no excuses. Our team motto is ‘tough times don’t last, tough people do."

The Vandals enter the game with a 5-1 overall record while the Yellowjackets are 4-2.

Both teams are 1-0 in district play after the Vandals whipped the Kemp Yellowjackets 40-7 while Mineola edged the Eustace Bulldogs 7-6 in their district openers last Friday night.

"Offensively, Mineola will show a two-back set," said Brady Pennington. "They are primarily an I-formation team but they will run some dive option. They have a waterbug at running back who is very dangerous when he touches the football."

Defensively, the Yellowjackets show a 5-3 alignment, according to the Vandal head coach.

"Mineola is one of the biggest teams that we have faced on defense," said Brady Pennington.

The Vandal head coach said it is team for the team to move forward in their quest to win the district championship.

"This is a huge game for us Friday night and we just need to keep on win- ning," summarized Brady Pennington.