KINGDOM CITY, Mo. - For the North Callaway Thunderbirds to correct their offensive shortcomings, the task starts with the movers and shakers.
Picking the correct personnel configuration to fortify North Callaway's faltering offensive line was head coach Kevin O'Neal's top priority entering tonight when the Thunderbirds (2-1) play their homecoming game against neighboring EMO rival Montgomery County (0-3). Kickoff is 7 p.m.
Junior quarterback Milo Henry was sacked eight times and North Callaway mustered just 108 yards of total offense in last week's 22-10 loss in the Thunderbirds' Eastern Missouri Conference opener at Bowling Green.
"Every offense starts with the five guys - the linemen," O'Neal said. "We have to find five guys who are going to work together and communicate, and right now that's a little bit of a struggle.
"That's on me, as much as it is anybody else. We've got to teach those guys how to communicate and work together, so we're going to focus on those five guys and making sure we get those guys believing in each other and working for each other. I think everything will build from that."
O'Neal anticipated the possibility of position swaps and challenges for jobs ahead of tonight's matchup.
"You might see us move some guys around and try some different combinations," O'Neal said. "... We're going to have some open competitions this week and see who wants to step up and get after it."
North Callaway's lone offensive score last week came on a 25-yard touchdown pass from Henry to sophomore tight end Adam Reno midway through the fourth quarter. Henry was just 6-of-15 passing for 62 yards and was intercepted twice.
The Thunderbirds also had trouble establishing their running game, ending up with a meager 46 yards on 36 carries. Senior running back Tyler Mattes - playing for the first time this season - and junior running back J.T. Higgins finished with just 22 yards apiece.
O'Neal expects the North Callaway offense to be more imaginative tonight.
"That's something that as a staff, we have to get creative with some things and find ways to get the football into our skill guys' hands, our playmakers' hands," O'Neal said. "We're going to work on that this week and hopefully have some success."
The Thunderbirds could start to solve their offensive ills against a Montgomery County defense that is surrendering 51.7 points per game. The Wildcats started EMO play last week with a 52-7 home loss to Wright City.
Given what took place at Bowling Green and the evidence is on film, O'Neal realizes the North Callaway offense will probably see a steady stream of blitzes from Montgomery County.
"We have to be prepared for that and able to pick those things up," O'Neal said. "They (offensive linemen) just have to know what's coming at them and be confident with who they're blocking, what their assignment is to do.
"I've tried to simplify some of those things this week for them, and hopefully that will help out."
Overshadowed in last week's loss was a menacing defensive effort by the Thunderbirds, who sacked Bowling Green senior quarterback Jacob Feldmann a remarkable 12 times and forced the Bobcats into the negative with minus-27 yards rushing on 36 total carries.
The defense was also responsible for North Callaway's 2-0 lead going into the final 12 minutes, the result of a safety after sacking Feldmann in the end zone in the second quarter. Bowling Green, though, rallied behind some big plays to score all 22 of its points in the fourth quarter.
"It's completely opposite of the offense," O'Neal said. "When those guys are on the field playing defense, they have nothing but the utmost confidence in what they're doing, they believe in the system that they're running, they attack and that's all it is.
"When you have confidence and you believe in what you're doing, you can play with aggression and that's what they're doing right now."
Montgomery County is having offensive hardships of its own, averaging a feeble 9.0 points per contest. The Wildcats line up two quarterbacks in the shotgun behind an unbalanced line.
"We have to make sure we're strong at the point of attack and we don't let up," O'Neal said. "That's an offense that can wear you down in a spot, so we have to make sure we don't wear down.
"We're going to work some different rotations, d-line wise, to kind of help with that - staying fresh in that area. They try to get more blockers at the point of attack than you've got defenders. We have to make sure we stay aggressive and don't sit back and let things come to us, because that's when they can bust a long play."
North Callaway hosts Montgomery County - Updates on Twitter: @FultonSunSports.
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