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Titans host fifth-ranked Cougars

Bonnie Byrd/bbevent.photoreflect.com

McDowell Titans quarterback Dakota Arrowood races along the sideline for yardage during McDowell’s win over North Buncombe Oct. 2 Arrowood has thrown for 651 yards and five touchdowns and has run for 185 yards and four scores this season.

By Marty Queen | The McDowell News

Published: October 15, 2009

Team speed — or more specifically the lack of it — has been the McDowell Titans' biggest problem this season.
At no point was that more evident than in last week's 58-35 loss to Erwin. The Titans (1-2 Mountain Athletic Conference, 1-7 overall) produced enough offense — 35 points and 364 yards, both season-highs — to win the average high school football game.
Quarterback Dakota Arrowood (49-134, 651 yards, 9 INTs, 5 TDs) threw for 210 yards and three touchdowns, and backup Michael Queen tossed a pair of scoring passes. Ryan Lambert caught five passes for 124 yards and a touchdown. Lambert and four other receivers, Brent Rowe, Matt Lytle, Joe Johnson and Heath Nanney caught a TD pass apiece.
But McDowell's defensive players simply couldn't catch Erwin in the open field and gave up season-highs of 58 points and 504 yards. Thirty-five of those points came during the second quarter, when Erwin broke open a 16-14 game and built a 44-14 halftime lead.
"The second quarter, they poured it on us pretty good," said Titans head coach Carson Gowan. "Not being able to run really shows up on defense. It's a little easier on offense because we can manipulate where the kids are, but on defense, there's nowhere to hide out there.
"Erwin is certainly a very solid football team. They've got five or six that can make a play at any time."
Unfortunately for the Titans, tonight's opponent in the annual homecoming game (7:30 kickoff) will have double — maybe even triple — that number of playmakers. The Asheville Cougars (2-0, 5-0-1), the state's fifth-ranked 3A team, feature an explosive offense and a stingy defense. Quarterback Brandon Whiteside has thrown for 850 yards, tailback Tysean Holloway has run for 522, and receiver Darius Drummond has caught 16 passes for 389 yards. The Cougars are coming off a 62-14 thrashing of Enka last Friday.
"They're very solid," said Gowan. "They've got two big ends and defensive tackles and their inside linebackers are 200-plus pounds. They're just a very, very good football team. That's the best team in Buncombe County."
But Gowan said the Titans would play hard.
"We're going to play even if it's pouring rain," said the second-year head coach. "Then we'll all be ankle deep in the mud. But the plan will be to try and make as many first downs as we can and keep the ball away from them on offense. Asheville is very good, but you never know. That's why you go out and play the game."
Gowan said the Titans are relatively healthy, although starting left guard Blake Grant, the team's only freshman, was extremely sick at Wednesday's practice and is listed as questionable.
"Just to be able to step in and start on the offensive line, and the fact that he's functioning at the level he is says a whole lot about his toughness," Gowan said.
Notes: Titans linebacker Tim Velez leads the team with 91 tackles, four quarterback sacks, eight quarterback knockdowns and a blocked kick...The Titans are 2-9 all-time against Asheville, a former league foe in the old I-40 league days...Asheville won the last meeting between the two, a 16-7 playoff win at McDowell in 1992.