Trojans host Bearcats in important season opener

As opening games go, the contest between Sacred Heart and Basile on Friday will be one with far-reaching implications. A victory by either team will not only go a long way toward gaining confidence but will also be used as a spring board into the power ratings. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Soileau-Landry field.
The Trojans are coming off of a mistake-prone 14-0 defeat at the hands of Central Catholic of Morgan City in the Kiwana’s Jamboree. Despite the mistakes, Head Coach Gary Adkins was pleased with the effort of his club. “I thought we gave a good effort against Central Catholic,” stated Adkins. “All of our mistakes are very correctable. We really only have three or four guys with game experience. We are not going to use that as an excuse. The good thing is that it is early and all of these things are fixable. We will just write the jamboree off as inexperience.”
An area of concern for Adkins is the number of penalties his squad was guilty of in the scrimmage and the jamboree. “We really need to work on cutting down on how many penalties we have been responsible for, especially the face mask penalties. I think by working harder on our tackling drills, we will eliminate those types of penalties. We talked to our players about it on Saturday and I think they now understand how it can negatively affect us. We were not excited about the loss in the jamboree, but we are very excited about the future.”
Adkins had high praise for the Trojans’ next opponent, Basile. “They are a very good football team,” stated Adkins. “When you watch them, you can tell they are an established program. They do everything the right way. In order for us to have a chance, we are going to have to focus on winning every play. It will be a great test for us. It is going to take a total team effort to hold our own against those guys.”
Basile Head Coach Kevin Bertrand also knows the importance of this regular season opener. “It is important for us to get off to a good start this season,” an adamant Bertrand said. “It is going to be a challenge for us on Friday. They are well coached and really know how to play assignment football.”
Bertrand understands that an important key to victory is to stop the ground game of the Trojans. “They run the ball very effectively. Their backs are really good, especially the fullback. They are big up front and are excellent blockers.” According to Bertrand moving the ball against the Trojan defense will be a test. “Defensively, they fly to the ball. They get after you and do not let up.”
The Bearcats looked like a team headed in the right direction after their 23-14 defeat of Pine Prairie in the Parish Jamboree. Bertrand was excited with his team’s performance against the Panthers. “I thought we ran the ball effectively and our backs did an outstanding job of finding the holes,” stated Bertrand. “We need to work on our offensive line holding their blocks a little longer. Defensively, our ends did a good job of holding their own against Pine Prairie’s big line. I also thought our line backers played well. We had a couple of assignment breakdowns. I just think some of our defensive players tried to do too much. They just need to learn how to take care of their job first.”
There is no doubt that this game will be an intriguing one to watch. Both squads run the ball effectively and can put up points. It may come down to which team can make that ever so crucial defensive stop and which team makes the least mistakes. A victory by either team will give them crucial power points and some much need confidence for the rest of the season.