Dalton sharp in preseason test at NW

Published 11:16 pm Saturday, August 9, 2014

A game usually circled on the calendar for both teams, the high school football matchup between Dalton and Northwest Whitfield was confined to only a scrimmage this season.

Saturday’s rivalry meeting at Bruin Stadium might not have the same electricity of past Dalton-Northwest regular season contests, many of them with region standings on the line, but it was still a game that both teams were glad to be able to play.

“You always enjoy a game like this and the community likes it,” Dalton coach Matt Land said, “but there’s things that both teams needed to see out of this and we made sure this (game) got scripted and we got them into action.”

Northwest coach Josh Robinson said the game didn’t have the same feel as a regular season game, but he was glad to see his team go up against the Catamounts.

“It’s not the same, but it’s good competition,” Robinson said, “and they’re going to win a lot of football games, so it was perfect for us.”

As with any scrimmage, the top concern for coaches is to come out of it without injuries, but that can’t be said for Northwest. Starting quarterback Caleb Shiflett went down in the third quarter with a separated shoulder.

Shiflett had his arm wrapped tightly with ice after the contest, but Robinson believes his senior will be back under center when the season opens at home against Ringgold on Aug. 23.

“He did something to his non-throwing shoulder, which is a little bit better,” Robinson said. “It appears to be dislocated, and he’ll probably be out about a week and he should be all right for Ringgold in a couple weeks.”

If Shiflett is out for the opener or even longer, then his younger brother Luke, a freshman, will get the starting nod under center.

Luke came in and completed his first pass, for about 25 yards, and showed signs that he could handle the position should the Bruins need it.

“He did a really good job for a freshman and he’s a talented kid, we just don’t want to play him right now,” Robinson said. “We’ll do what we have to, though. Football is a game of injuries. If someone gets hurt, someone else has to step up.”

The outcome wasn’t a concern to the coaches, and the score was not kept in the second half. Both team’s varsity squads played the first half, and Dalton led 21-7 at halftime.

The Cats, who have built their offense around the rushing game in recent years, looked much different than might have been expected during their first drive of the game. They moved impressively down the field through the air as quarterback Payton Veraldi completed five of his six passes during the possession for 71 yards.

Tyler Noland capped off the 80-yard drive with an 11-yard run for the game’s first points.

“(Passing) was something we obviously wanted to see against someone else, and we needed to see it in live action,” Land said. “We’re not going to throw much during a game, so it’s good to get out here and do that and see what we can do.”

Veraldi had two passing touchdowns, the first a 19-yard strike to Tyler Britton and the second a 20-yard pass to Zek Cobb.

Northwest’s only score in the first half came on a 66-yard pass from Caleb Shiflett to Jamon Horne.

Dalton opens its season Aug. 22 at northeast Alabama’s Scottsboro High School.