Kannan Carr's first start for Poplar Bluff was challenging.
Not only did the freshman quarterback have a difficult opponent in Chaminade, but it rained heavily the entire game.
"The weather bothered him a little bit," Poplar Bluff coach David Sievers said. "I think it was a deal where a more experienced kid might not have been as concerned with it, but he came off the field after that first drive and said, 'My hands are wet. My hands are wet.' I said, 'That's why they make towels.'"
He finished 10 for 27 passing for 78 yards and three interceptions as the Mules lost 34-13 to Chaminade.
Carr's second start this Friday against Hillsboro should be a little more favorable.
"We feel like we match up pretty good with them," Sievers said. "They are not overly big. We match up with them really well. I think for the first time in a couple of weeks, we have more team speed than they do. So I think we'll be able to take advantage of that."
There is still rain in the forecast, but as of press time, there is less than a 50 percent chance of rain at kickoff, with the weather moving out of town as the game continues.
Senior quarterback Josiah Kilgore is out with a back injury suffered just before halftime against Jackson. In an emergency, Sievers said the Mules will go with their wildcat package with Shemyron Townsend taking the snap.
"Hopefully we'll have a little more success throwing the ball around, but (Carr) is going to get another start and so far we've had a pretty good week of practice with him," Sievers said. "He's not in first hour with the varsity kids, so we are missing that time, but Carr is going to start and we are going to go from there."
Through three halves of football, Carr has 13 completions for 112 yards.
"He's a heady kid, he's a confident kid. Last week he was thrown in against a real quality opponent, and it was not the most advantageous start for him. It wasn't the best position for him to be in," Sievers said. "We're having a full week of practice with him and knowing what he can and can't do ... We're going to do everything we can to get him some success early.
"I told (offensive coordinator John David Pattillo), "Even if it is a 2-yard gain, we just need to play pitch and catch with him a little bit and see how it goes."
Sievers also believes the Mules will be able to run the ball more successfully this week.
"Hopefully, we can run the ball right at them. The more we can run the ball the better off Carr is going to be," Sievers said.
With Kilgore out, Townsend and Isaiah Johnson each had modest games against Chaminade. Townsend had nine carries for 36 yards and Johnson had 14 carries for 28 yards. Poplar Bluff mixed in some designed runs and option plays for Carr, who had nine rushing yards.
"We're hoping that with our speed, we've always had success running to the edge on them," said. "We think we can get to the edge this week. But that's going to depend on what they are going to do. We've had so much success in the past running to the edge that everyone has tried really hard to take the edge away from us this year. If they want to load up the edge, we think we can run between the tackles."
Defensively, the Mules will need to focus on their keys in order to not get fooled by Hillsboro's misdirection.
"They want to play in a phone booth. They run all that misdirection, wing-T stuff," Sievers said. "It is a situation where if we are real defensively sound and we run hats to the football, we should be fine. Basically, you have to keep your eyes out of the backfield. They've got certain keys that will take you to the football, but if you wind up trying to follow the football, it is going to cause you problems."
Defensive tackle Preston Taylor is coming off an 11-tackle game against Chaminade while Townsend, Wyatt Lazalier and Dylan Wells all had seven.
After missing a week because of a concussion, Chris Barker returned an interception for a touchdown and two of his four tackles were for a loss.
It is already set that the Mules are going to host Oakville in the first round of the district tournament, but that isn't altering any of Poplar Bluff's plans against Hillsboro.
"We are in a position where we need to win a football game. I was really proud of the way the kids played against Chaminade, and the fact that we fought for 48 minutes," Sievers said. "We are going to take care of Hillsboro. We are going to play week 9 and see what we need to do to get ready for Oakville. We aren't going to let week 10 dictate what we do in week 9."