By Rick Pedone
Sports Editor

A trip to Dr. Phillips, one of the top Class 6A teams in Florida, probably isn’t the ideal remedy for the Osceola Kowboys after their overtime loss at St. Cloud last week.

But the Panthers, 1-0, are next up on the schedule, Friday at 7:30 p.m., and Osceola Coach Doug Nichols said his team will play for an upset.

“We go from the frying pan into the fire,” Nichols said.

Osceola, 0-1, saw a four-game winning streak against St. Cloud snapped last week.

The Kowboys scored on touchdown runs by Reggie Hall,  Frank Thomas and Kieron Williams, a 80-yard kickoff return from Steffon McCray and on a 31-yard halfback-option pass from freshman Dwight “Scooter” Fagan to Terrance Tatume.

Nichols said it was a good, but inconsistent effort.

“They fought hard. It was a back and forth game,” Nichols said. “Give all the credit to St. Cloud. Their quarterback did some things against us that I didn’t think he could do.”

Nichols pointed to turnovers – three fumbles in the fourth quarter and overtime – as one reason for Osceola’s loss. Many Kowboys also cramped up on a hot evening with no breeze.

“We had some mistakes, but that’s football,” Nichols said. “I told the kids that this isn’t the time to have doubts. You either are on board with where we are going, or you’re not. There’s no room in the middle.”

Aside from bruises, OHS is healthy for Dr. Phillips, a 48-7 winner over Edgewater Friday. The Panthers boast several D-I recruits. Last year, Dr. Phillips won at OHS, 9-0.

“They’ve got kids signing to Michigan, and we have kids signing for their driver’s licenses,” Nichols said.