Home finale for FB squad Friday night

Warriors take on Tigers at 7:30 p.m.

The Del Norte High varsity football team seeks its first win in more than a month on Friday on senior night  in the 2011 home finale at Mike Whalen Field. Del Norte faces Arcata starting at 7:30 p.m. The junior varsity game begins at 5 p.m.

 In their first meeting on Sept. 30 on the road, Del Norte earned a 33-12 win. It was the last time the Warriors won.

Del Norte head coach Ray Rook said Arcata is an improved team that the Warriors must take seriously if they want to come away with the win.

“They are a good young team,” he said.

 Del Norte is 5-3 overall and 2-3 in the Big 5 while Arcata is 4-5 overall and 2-4 in the conference.

The past three games Del Norte has struggled on both sides of the ball after starting the year 5-0. Last week they lost to Fortuna on the road 35-0.

“Hopefully we can get all of that behind us,” Rook said.

A win would certainly be a good place to start.

Rook said that the squad must continue to play together and give it all they can and hopefully earn a needed win on senior night.

The Tigers are an excellent running team led by Aleric Stone.

“He’s one of the best running backs in the league,” Rook said. Del Norte must play aggressively on defense and not let the Tigers pick up large chunks of yards on the ground, he said.

On offense, Del Norte needs to be consistent, keep silly penalties and turnovers to a minimum and efficiently run the ball.

The past two weeks, senior running back Collin Taylor, who before suffering a sore hamstring rushed for more 1,000 yards, has been limited to sporadic play the past two games.

Rook said on Wednesday it is still day-to-day with him and he will be a game time decision.

Sophomore Jordan Carpenter has received the bulk of the carries and has been solid. Carpenter and the other running backs must step  up on Friday and be consistent, Rook said.

The passing game needs to also have a good night so the Warriors will have a well-rounded offensive attack, he said.

When asked if the Taylor injury has affected the offense Rook replied. “Oh yeah, it’s huge to have an injury to one of our better players. It’s hard not to have him at 100 percent.”

Rook said that it would be nice to have a good-sized crowd as the team honors the seniors.

“It’s important to honor the seniors with a big crowd,” he said. “They have worked hard for a number of years playing football.”

Del Norte ends the regular season next week at McKinleyville.