As clear as he can be, Opp head football coach Jack Whigham said Wednesday if his team doesn’t win this week against region opponent Abbeville, then they will have no shot at earning a playoff berth.

“We have to win to get in the playoffs,” he said. “We were glad to be able to win last week, but we’re still backed up in the corner.

“Every week’s a must win for us,” he said.

Last season, the Bobcats were 3-2 in the region race at this point of the season. Heading into this week’s Class 3A, Region 2 contest against Abbeville, Opp is 3-2 in the region.

Last week, the Bobcats beat Dale County, 41-22.

Whigham said he believes his team can win Friday night.

“But we’ve got to play a really good sound game,” he said. “We’ve got to not have turnovers and penalties. If we do that, and get in it late, then we can win it.”

Whigham said Abbeville is athletic on both sides of the ball, and Abbeville is currently 4-1 in region play.

In order to win Friday night, Whigham said his team must limit ball possession for the Yellow Jackets.

“If we don’t score, we’ve got to move the ball and keep it,” Whigham said. “If we have a bunch of three-and-outs, it’s going to be very hard for us to win the game.”

This week, Opp City Schools have been out for a fall break, and Whigham said there has been some “concern” in relation to his player’s focus.

“We had about four to five kids out (Wednesday), and that concerns me,” he said. “I know that was probably due to the intercession.”

In addition, the Bobcats are nursing some injuries as well heading into this week’s game.

“So, we’re short-handed in some areas,” Whigham said. “I believe the other kids will have to step up and fill in the void for these guys that are beat up some.”

Some high school sports enthusiasts say that the Bobcats play with a lot of heart.

Whigham said that’s one of the most important aspects of the game this week.

“If we don’t believe we can win the game, then we don’t have a chance (to play in the playoffs),” he said. “I think our kids realize the importance of this game. We’re sitting here like we were last year. We had to win the last three area games. We did that last season, and we have to do it this year. But, we still got our work cut out for us.”