Central has four district games left and little margin for error if the Tigers want to continue their long run of playoff appearances.
Central is 3-2 overall and 2-2 in league play with A-8 games remaining against Warner, Panama, Pocola and Talihina. The Tigers also have a non-district game at Barnsdall on Oct. 12.
"Now we've got to win one of the games we didn't win last year. It can be done, but we have to play better than last week," said Central head coach Wade Couch. "We had a good practice on Monday and, hopefully, the kids will realize there's only five games left and nothing's guaranteed after that."
Central beat Warner 30-14 in 2006, but the Eagles come into this year's game at 4-1 overall and 3-0 in the district. Warner suffered its first loss last Friday with a 32-7 setback against a strong Foyil squad.
"Warner throws the ball all over the place and they're just as big and physical as last year," said Couch. "They're not as fast as last year, but they could have a better overall team. They're definitely a little more resilient. They got beat by Foyil last week, but Foyil is a really good team."
Senior quarterback Andrew Mealer directs Warner's Spread offense and has impressed Couch with his passing ability.
"He's a really good-looking kid. He's got a strong arm, knows the routs and throws the ball real well," said Couch. "He stays in the shotgun a lot and it's tough to get pressure on him. That's a key for us, because if we give him time he'll find a receiver and complete passes all night."
Mealer's favorite receiver is Jed Baker, a junior who sometimes rotates at quarterback when the Eagles want to run the ball.
"When they want to throw, they'll find number 15 (Baker) and get the ball to him. We have to do a good job defensively on him," said Couch.
Baylen Fowler (5-6, 215) is the running back for Warner.
"He's a spark plug. Not very tall, but you can tell he worked a lot in the weight room over the offseason. He looks really solid and he also blocks really well on pass protection," said Couch.
Pressuring the Warner quarterback is one of Central's main objectives this week.
"Those defensive linemen have a big test ahead of them. Coach (Lance) Winans has taken this as a challenge and they're working hard this week," said Couch.
Although Warner allowed 32 points last week, the Eagles are pretty stout on the defensive side of the ball. Warner didn't allow a single point while opening the season with shutout wins over Chouteau, Porum and Keota.
"They blitz someone on every down and sometimes they bring more than one," noted Couch.
"We're going to look to throw first and run second because we feel we might have some things open up in the passing game," said the Central coach.
"The game could last a long time, because Warner wants to pass first and run second also."
