The Warren Dragons returned home in front of a packed house at War Memorial Field last Friday, only to watch as Meadville spoiled the party, dominating in every facet of the game in a 53-6 win over the Dragons.

The task doesn’t get any easier tonight, as the Dragons (3-2 overall, 1-2 Region 7) hit the road to Oil City for a date with the defending D-10 champs and current unbeaten Oilers (7 p.m.).

So, is a bounce back in the cards?

“We had what I call a mid-season progress report on Monday at film session. We laid it out all out in plain and simple terms where we stood, how we felt about things as coaches and where we go from here,” said Warren coach Mark Morelli. “I think our kids have put forth their best practice effort since the beginning of our season this week. We still control our destiny and still have our pre-season goals within reach.”

It’s an Oiler team that has really looked impressive at times, with wins over Conneaut, General McLane and Franklin, but they were taken to the brink last week in a 55-54 win against DuBois, a team that Warren beat soundly.

Still, it’s something Morelli, his staff and the players won’t pay too much attention to given the unpredictability of Region 7.

“Oil City seems to be living on a roller coaster. They beat Conneaut yet had their struggles with DuBois,” he noted. “They play Meadville next week in a highly anticipated matchup and we are sandwiched in the middle. One thing about our Region 7 and District 10 in general, every week is so unpredictable. The mental approach to the game of football is vital, momentum is something we make happen and confidence is something within you.”

The Oilers, like Meadville feature a run-heavy approach. Christian Cole, Pennsylvania’s leading rusher a year ago, is now at Clarion University, but the Oilers haven’t slowed down. Noah Petro has carried the ball 89 times for 645, an average of 7.2 yards per carry, to go along with 10 touchdowns. Junior Cam Russell, who was featured after his tremendous act of sportsmanship last week in helping an injured DuBois player off the field, is a big threat as well, toting the ball 71 times for 601 yards, an average of 8.5 ypc. and 6 scores. Quarterback Holden Stahl has attempted just 20 passes through five games, but is a threat in the rushing attack with 218 yards.

“One area we did poorly in last week, is we did not attack the plays, we did not come off the ball,” Morelli said. “Defensively, we waited for the plays to come to us; offensively we just did not have a push up front. Some of that is credited to Meadville, their line is one of the better ones we have seen this year. Both of these areas were a point of emphasis this week in practice.”

Offensively for Warren, they were unable to get anything last week against Meadville’s stout defensive line. Tony Batiste, Brent Young, Alex Zeigler and company look to change that this week. When the offense is clicking, quarterback Micah Passmore is connecting with the explosive Ryan Arnold and the consistent Alex Anderson, while also spearheding the rushing attack along with tailback Ethan Benedict and fullback Jamo Douvlos.

It’s a team that bounced back in a positive manner following their initial loss of the season at Fort LeBoeuf, and they are confident that they can do so again.

“We have to generate some momentum, some positive plays. We cannot let the game get out of reach early like we did against Meadville,” Morelli said. “On the field, we need to play with an attacking type attitude on defense and swarm to the ball, something we did not do last week. Offensively, we have to execute better regardless of the play called. At times last week, we had the right play called but not everyone did their job for the play to be successful.”