CAPITAL AWESOME,BUT NITRO'S CYRUS SEES VULNERABILITY

Publication: THE CHARLESTON GAZETTE
Published: 09/09/1989
Page: P1B
Headline: CAPITAL AWESOME,BUT NITRO'S CYRUS SEES VULNERABILITY
Byline: MIKE CHERRY

Stick a thermometer in Greg Cyrus's mouth. Give him plenty of.
fluids, stuff him with aspirin, see if anyone still makes house calls
And see that Cyrus, Nitro High's football coach, gets plenty of
rest. The poor man said Friday night, after his Wildcats were
thrashed 37-6 by awe-inspiring Capital High at Laidley Field, that
Nitro was about three players from performing the unthinkable _
beating the Cougars.
"I think a team with a great back can beat them,' Cyrus said
. "If you can control the ball and keep it away from them. If
we had Huntington High's backfield, I think we could beat them. We
have a good line and good receivers.'
Cyrus seemed sane, rational. No twitches below the eyes, no.
plans to run up Mt. Everest backward or throw the Thanksgiving turkey
at his mother-in-law.
"You control the ball and keep it away, I think they could get
very frustrated,' Cyrus said. "They're aggressive kids. If we
would have drove down again, they might have gotten panicky,
frustrated, late hits. We could have gotten them.'
OK, call him crazy. Call the improved Wildcats 1-2. Call the
Cougars the most-maligned 3-0 team in the Mountain State. This is a
squad that has outscored its opposition by an average of 35-6 in its
first three games since the school's creation. A crowd of 3,284
watched the Cougars' home opener.
"What our guys, and some of the fans, need to realize is that
improvement comes slowly,' Capital Coach Roger Jefferson said. "I.
do think we made progress. They (Nitro) line up some pretty big boys
there.'
Capital outgained Nitro 290-143, earning 247 rushing yards.
Senior quarterback William King and running back Lee Henry each
scored two touchdowns to lead the romp.
"People want to see 50 points,' King said. "We just take
what they give us.'
Most involved with Capital feel the Cougars will continue to
improve as the season progresses. The second half of the season
appears more difficult with foes such as Beckley and Huntington.
"Our biggest problem is ourselves,' Capital tackle Scott Ayres
said.
Though far from Shakespeare in elegance, King predicted how
Capital would fare later. "By time we get there,' he said, "we
should be there.'
King was far superior with his feet. The fireplug-like King
busted an option right for a 68-yard touchdown on Capital's first
possession.
But his piece de resistance occurred in the first quarter's.
final two minutes when he intercepted a Steve White pass and returned.
it 65 yards for a touchdown. That sentence, however, fails to do the
run justice. Where is Shakespeare when really needed?
"(Matt) McNeel grabbed me,' King said. "Somehow he let go of
me.'
A pity for the Wildcats. King intercepted the underthrown pass
for McNeel. The receiver grabbed King and flung him, but King kept
his balance near the left sideline. Another Wildcat missed. King.
ran up the sideline, was boxed in, spun, cut across field, outran two
Wildcats (with the blocking help of Henry) and scored with 1:12 left
Zack Romine's 33-yard field goal accounted for the second
quarter's only points, leaving Capital up 17-0 at half. All scoring
occurred after Nitro's initial drive. The Wildcats earned three
first downs and moved 49 yards on 11 plays to the Cougar 25 before
McNeel was just wide with a 42-yard field-goal attempt.
"It should have been 3-3 at halftime,' said Cyrus, starting
that again.
"After the first drive they made on us, we played well,'
Jefferson said.
Henry scored from the 6 in the third quarter and the 10 early in
the fourth to increase the margin to 30-0. The 6-foot-6 McNeel, who
caught five passes for 80 yards, broke the shutout with 7:29 left
when he scored from 25 yards away on a White screen pass against
Capital's second team. Four of McNeel's catches occurred in the
final quarter.
Capital closed the scoring with 1:02 left when reserve back Eric
Smedley scored on a 25-yard run.
Capital fullback Al Dean led all rushers with 92 yards on 15
carries. White completed six of 20 attempts for 78 yards for Nitro
. He was intercepted twice.
The Cougars will rest a week before visiting St. Albans on Sept
. 22. Nitro hosts Herbert Hoover next week.