By Mike London

mike.london@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — Catawba defensive lineman Dominique Walker, a sophomore reserve from Burlington, is head coach Curtis Walker’s nephew.
“Oh, there’s some pressure in that,” Dominique said at Tuesday’s press conference. “But I just keep doing what I’m doing.”
Catawba’s football team will attempt to keep doing what it’s been doing today at Brevard.
What the SAC-leading Indians (6-2, 3-1) have been doing is winning — four games in a row — and they expect to make it five straight in a 1 p.m. contest on the sports turf at Brevard Memorial Stadium.
On paper, it’s a Halloween mismatch. Brevard (0-8, 0-4 SAC) has been shut out by Wingate and Tusculum and has been clobbered by Carson-Newman and Newberry.
Brevard announced plans to move down to Division III athletics last May, and the Tornados are expected to begin a transition to Division III with the 2017-18 academic year.
That will mean no athletic scholarships and it will eventually mean competing on football fields with schools such as Greensboro College, Methodist and Averett, rather than trying to compete with Division II schools such as Lenoir-Rhyne, Carson-Newman and Wingate.
One reason for the move: Brevard has won 24 percent of its football games the last nine seasons.
Coach Walker, as you might expect, has preached one-game-at-a-time all week. He doesn’t want players thinking about Tusculum (Nov. 4) or Lenoir-Rhyne (Nov. 11).
“We have to stay focused on Brevard,” Walker said. No one is looking past Brevard. This game is just as important as any other game if we’re going to accomplish the goals we’ve set for this season.”
Catawba has won seven of eight outings against Brevard, although some horror stories can be told around the campfire about Brevard’s muddy, 7-6 victory against the Indians in 2009.
Past scores in the series indicate that Brevard, for whatever reason, plays tough against Catawba. Catawba won 17-13 in 2011, 19-13 in 2012 and 42-37 last season.
Brevard does what it’s always done under coach Paul Hamilton. The Tornados will seek to shorten the game with a triple-option, ball-control running attack. Brevard ran the ball 47 times and went to the air only 12 times last week in a 41-7 loss to Newberry.
Even if the Tornados get down early, they’ll stick with the game plan. Walker said in the film he’s studied, Brevard stayed on the ground 85 percent of the time.
“They’re gonna run the ball,” Walker said. “Defensively, we can’t greedy and we have to play our responsibilities. We’re not going to have as many offensive possessions as we usually do, so we have to be careful. We can’t afford to go three or four possessions without scoring.”
Brevard has allowed 30-plus points six times, so Catawba has a great opportunity to build on the offensive breakout that occurred in last Saturday’s 39-21 victory against UNC-Pembroke.
“That was the best offensive game we’ve played all season,” said tackle Kieran Castillo, a true freshman from Wilmington who has moved into the starting lineup. “No sacks allowed and more than 300 yards rushing. That’s a pretty good offensive game.”
Catawba also won the special-teams battle with UNCP. Part of the special-teams effort came from Reid Flippin, a former quarterback who has put on 30 solid pounds (from 190 to 220) and transitioned into a backup linebacker.
“I’ve just kind of stayed in the weight room,” Flippin said.
A lot of the Indians have. A lot of sweat has been poured into a turnaround season for the program. If Catawba prevails today, it will secure its first winning record in the league since 2010.
“People are patting us on the back,” Walker said. “But we’re just working hard every day and doing what we’re supposed to do. Where we are now is where we expected to be.”