WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — KSN’s Game of the Week between Derby and Hutchinson is sure to be a fun one on Friday night.
KSN spoke to Derby’s and Hutchinson’s teams to preview the matchup and discuss what they believe are the keys to victory.
For Hutchinson, the Salthawks know they have a tall task in front of them, but the Hutchinson defense is electric and hasn’t allowed a point in its past three games. That defense will need to continue its stellar play if it hopes to slow down a Derby team that has scored at least 40 points every game this year.
“It’s always a big game when Derby comes to town,” Hutchinson head coach Mike Vernon said. “You know, they’re a great program, and they do it right down there. And we know that we’re in for a fight. So, yeah, the community is excited, and we’re ready to go. The defense is going to have to stand up, and they’re going to have to play a really good game. We’re going to have to move the ball on offense and keep it away from them.”
Hutchinson linebacker Kevin Wilson said the defense will need to slow down the Derby offense if it hopes to win.
“I think our defense has played very well over the past three games,” Wilson said. “Well, no points, under 100 yards in each game. Our offense is scoring points … They’ve got a very high-powered offense, and they have a couple of good guys. So I mean, shutting down those guys are going to be key to winning this game. So it’ll be interesting to see what happens.”
Derby head coach Brandon Clark said he knows how physical Hutchinson’s team is.
“You know, Hutch has become a rival of Derby’s,” Clark said. “They’re a really tough team. They’re very physical. So when you play Hutch, you kind of see where your team is at with the physicality part of it. So our kids are excited. Every week, they’re excited, and this week’s just like any other week.”
