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West put to the test by string of injuries: But Wolves still have sights set on playoffs
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
When the Plano West football team took the field for the second half of Friday's game against Allen, the Wolves had a distinctively different look on offense.
That's because the team was without senior quarterback Travis Korry.
"Travis got dinged in the head in that first half and we needed to take him out," said Mike Hughes, West head coach.
"I thought I was OK, but some of my friends said I was mumbling, so I don't know," Korry said. "I wanted to get back out there so much though; I couldn't sit down the rest of the game, I had to walk around and was patting people on the back for playing well."
West lost, 47-25, after not scoring in the second half until the game's final play.
"Obviously losing Travis was a very difficult adjustment to make because you game plan for your starters," Hughes said. "And our offense is centered around our quarterback so if we had known we were going to go with [sophomore backups Zach Norris or Colton Hepp], we would have probably had a different game plan."
Friday wasn't West's first encounter with a potential concussion to a starter as sophomore running back Sotonya Jamabo didn't play against Allen after suffering an injury similar to Korry's a week prior against McKinney Boyd.
"Soso is another one that got dinged in the head," Hughes said.
Those are big losses for West as Korry has thrown for 1,039 yards and seven touchdowns this season while he and Jamabo have combined for 1,056 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground.
Ascertaining their status has been more complex than dealing with the standard bone or tendon problem.
"With the potential of a concussion, you have to be real cautious," Hughes said. "You have to visit with a doctor and then there is five-step test to see if you've recovered and, of course, this all varies from person to person depending on the severity. But the first thing we look at is the kids' health; he isn't going in there if he isn't healthy."
The Wolves, however, are optimistic two of their primary offensive weapons will be healthy come 7:30 p.m. Friday when McKinney rolls into Kimbrough Stadium.
"Soso should be ready to go [by today]," said Auston Anderson, West junior running back. "And I think Travis will be able to play too, so hopefully we will be at full strength."
Korry concurred with that statement.
"I'm definitely feeling a lot better," he said. "I think I just needed a little time to clear my head."
Neither Korry nor Jamabo practiced Monday, but Korry was cleared by doctors to go through a full practice with no contact Tuesday and then a full practice with contact Wednesday with the determination of his availability for Friday being made after that.
If Korry cannot go, West will look to Norris or Hepp.
"We have a couple of sophomore quarterbacks and both have good arms," Hughes said. "The future is very bright for both of them."
Norris stepped in during the second half against Allen, completing 9-of-14 throws for 112 yards and a touchdown, but was also sacked a plethora of times. Hughes said if Korry can't go, this week's practices would determine who started at quarterback for West, though he did admit a rotation was possible.
If Jamabo isn't cleared, Anderson would get the bulk of West's carries as was evident against the Eagles, where he ran the ball 18 times for 82 yards.
"Auston is a really good back and we have faith in him," Hughes said. "He played really well last week and I expect him to do well this week too."
Anderson seems confident as well.
"I don't want to give anything away," he said, "but let's just say we are adding a little more flavor to the game plan."
That type of positive attitude has permeated the team this week despite the fact West has started District 10-5A with losses to Boyd and Allen.
"Our guys know the way it is in this district," Hughes said. "It's OK to hurt when you lose, but you have to come back upbeat after that and I think our guys have done that because we've had some great practices."
The Wolves don't need to feel down and out either as despite their start, wins in their last three regular season games (McKinney, Plano Senior, Plano East) would put West in no worse than third place, meaning a trip to the playoffs for the first time since 2009.
"Controlling our own destiny is big for us," Anderson said. "But you don't want to look down the road too much because it all starts with winning Friday. Beating McKinney is very important for us because we want to try and get back on the right track. And I think you have seen that with the intensity in practice picking up."
Both among players who will compete Friday and those that are just hoping to.
"Obviously I'm still taking things one day at a time and keeping focused on that process," Korry said. "But I really want to be back on the field Friday; I'm looking for the chance to redeem myself."
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