The North Moore football team is back on the road tonight for another Yadkin Valley Conference game, this time against South Stanly.

The Mustangs (0-8, 0-4 Yadkin Valley Conference) are coming off a loss to East Montgomery (6-2, 3-1 YVC) in Biscoe last week. Though the Eagles stormed out to a 28-0 lead in the first quarter, North Moore settled down and held their opponents scoreless for the remaining three. Two second-half touchdowns by the Mustangs produced the 28-12 final score.

“This week, our message has been to refocus and to recommit,” head coach Greg Simmons said. “We can’t have those lapses of focus. Against East Montgomery at the start of the game, we weren’t focused, we weren’t playing our responsibilities and we got beat because of it. If we can refocus and recommit to the team and to the program, to our responsibilities, I think we’ll be OK.”

Simmons said his squad is a little banged up and looks like a football team that had its bye the first week of the season. They will have to look to some younger players to step up and fill in for the guys that are out.

Simmons said they would mix it up a little bit on offense this week. Against East, Tyler Wallace got most of the snaps at quarterback, with Xavier Scotton playing running back and receiver. Simmons thought the team had a pretty good night offensively.

“They both bring a little something different to the table,” he said, “but they both need to be on the field. So as much as we can keep them both on the field, the better. Xavier’s one of those guys who can play multiple positions. I think that’s the best chance we have moving the ball when they’re both on the field.”

Simmons called Jamar Brower, who has been playing both running back and linebacker, the unsung hero of the team who has become a leader on a defense that has been playing well the past few weeks.

“He’s taken it upon himself to really be a defensive standout,” he said. “He’s really helped solidify us over there (on defense).”

South Stanly is 1-7 on the year (1-3 YVC). But Simmons said the Rebel Bulls are a better football team than their record indicates. East Montgomery slipped by them on a last-minute field goal two weeks ago. Last week, they gave West Montgomery (6-2, 31 YVC) a battle, but ultimately fell 49-35.

“They moved the ball all over the place the last two weeks, East Montgomery and West Montgomery,” he said. “I mean, it was a shootout against West Montgomery. If they could have stopped that quarterback (Jaquil Capel), they would have beaten West Montgomery.”

Simmons called South Stanly a “pound it at you” football team with big size up front and three backs that are effective runners. He said that the Bulls reminded him of Southwestern Randolph, whom the Mustangs faced in the second game of the season.

“They rely on a lot of guys going both ways like we do,” he said, “but they’ve got some size and physicality, that’s for sure.”

Contact John Krahnert III at sports@thepilot.com.