"They make you defend the whole field." - Mickey Moss The Blacksburg Wildcats don't want this scenario - too many turnovers and allowing offenses to get to the corner - to repeat itself against powerhouse South Stanly today.

The Wildcats finished with five turnovers, including a fumble and interception on their first two drives in the second half, in a season-opening 27-8 loss to Walhalla last Friday.

"We turned the ball over and gave them a couple easy scores," Blacksburg coach Mickey Moss said. "Defensively, we didn't tackle very well."

That can't happen this week if the Wildcats want to be competitive against South Stanly, which finished as Western Region Class A runnerup last season and is expected to contend for a state championship this season.

"They are pretty darn good," Moss said. "They look a lot like they did last year on film. They have basically the same team they had last year."

That includes star defensive back Terry Shankle, one of North Carolina's top players. Shankle was named the preseason co-player of the year in Class A along with Michael Dobson of Mt. Airy.

With 4.43 speed in the 40, Shankle rushed for 973 yards and had 15 interceptions as a two way force for the Red Bulls last season.

He's rated among the top 20 defensive backs in the nation by Rivals.com.

Shankle isn't the only highly-rated South Stanly player. Anthony Stroud anchors a huge offensive line. At 6'4 and 285 pounds, Stroud joined Shankle on the preseason Class A All- State squad from the Rivals.com high school recruiting Web site.

South Stanly operates from a shotgun formation in hopes of spreading the field to allow their talented players to find open spaces in the defense. Detric Allen, who passed for 1,500 yards and rushed for 800 more a year ago, directs the offense at quarterback.

"Their quarterback is very athletic," the Blacksburg coach said. "They make you defend the whole field."

South Stanly is no slouch on defense, either. They employ a 4-4 alignment and blitz frequently. Linebacker James Watkins is the team's leading tackler.

"They will try to put pressure on you," Moss said.

South Stanly enters today's contest on a high after beating rival West Montgomery, the No. 3-rated team in North Carolina, 18-14.

"That was a big game for us," South Stanly coach Luke Little said.

South Stanly limited West Montgomery to only three first downs.

Little said his team must guard against a letdown against a dangerous and improving Blacksburg team.

"They are better than last year," he said. "They look more athletic this year and fundamentally sound. We are coming off a big rivalry game and have to travel to Blacksburg."

Little said he likes Blacksburg quarterback Darrell Walton. He's also impressed with the Wildcats corps of receivers and running backs.

The Wildcats also pose problems on defense.

Little said tackling and turnovers will be the keys to the game.

Moss also stressed the need to limit mistakes this week in practice.

"We can't turn the football over," he said. "We're not a big-play team, so we have to execute to move the ball. We have to limit our mistakes to have a chance."