Ken Adams isn”t going to allow the Lamar County High School football team to get overconfident.
Adams wants his players to forget the team”s 2-0 start to the season and focus on each day leading up to the next game.
Lamar County”s next game will be an Alabama High School Athletic Association Class 2A, Region 7 matchup Friday at Cleveland.
“We talked the other night that we have to measure ourselves every day,” Adams said. “We have to measure ourselves each day instead of from game to game.”
Adams believes Cleveland will be Lamar County”s biggest test this season. The Bulldogs opened the year with victories against South Lamar (61-20) and Cold Springs (47-12).
“South Lamar is young and doesn”t have a lot of experience, and Cold Springs is the same way,” Adams said. “We don”t know who we are yet. I believe in what our guys are doing. I believe they”re being aggressive, and I think they”re being physical. But if we don”t measure ourselves each day we”re not going to get any better. What you did yesterday doesn”t mean much today.”
Cleveland (0-2) has lost to Locust Fork (15-14) and to Sulligent (35-12).
“We”ve got to buckle down,” Adams said. “We need to go Friday night and take care of business.
“They”re a lot better than their record shows. They”re very athletic. They”re big up front on both sides of the ball. They run to the football. Offensively they do a good job. The other night against Sulligent they had some turnovers. Sulligent picked off a pass and returned it for a touchdown and returned a fumble for a touchdown. That kind of padded it up a little bit.”
Lamar County beat Cleveland 42-25 last season.
Adams believes games are won in the trenches and credits the offensive and defensive lines for the team”s start.
“I”ve been pleased with our line, offensively and defensively,” Adams said. “If we”re going to be successful it”s going to be because of what they do or are able to do. That”s going to be the whole key.”
Brandon Merchant at left guard, Reed Eaves at left tackle, Brantley Stanford at center, Tyler Sprouse at right tackle, Cole Bradford at right guard and Jimmy Lann at tight end have anchored the offensive line.
Merchant and Carson Chiquito at ends and Eaves and Sprouse at tackles play on the defensive front.
n South Lamar at Brilliant: The Stallions will seek their first win in Josh Harper”s first season as head coach when they play Brilliant.
The Stallions want to be more competitive after losing 61-20 to Lamar County and 45-12 to Hackleburg to begin the season.
South Lamar beat Brilliant 64-21 last season, setting a school record at the time for most points in a game.
n Sulligent at Cold Springs: The Blue Devils will attempt to be the second team from Lamar County to beat Cold Springs in as many weeks.
The Blue Devils will seek their second consecutive victory after a season-opening 40-38 loss to Hamilton (Ala.).
Sulligent beat Cold Springs 47-6 last season.
n Pickens County at Thorsby: The Pickens County Tornadoes seek their first 3-0 start to a season since 2005 when they play Thorsby.
Pickens County has been impressive in Scott Marchant”s first season as coach, beating Greensboro 48-24 and Shades Mountain Christian 67-7.
Pickens County beat Thorsby 61-6 last season.
n Springwood School at Pickens Academy: The Pirates will attempt to get back on track against Springwood School.
Pickens Academy suffered a 19-16 loss to Southern Academy last Friday after beating The Heritage School 56-36 in its season opener.
Pickens Academy beat Springwood 27-9 for their first win last season.
n Aliceville at Sumiton Christian: The Yellow Jackets will attempt to remain undefeated in Robin Tyra”s first year as coach after winning two defensive battles.
Aliceville (2-0) has defeated American Christian (6-3) and Greene County (8-6).
Aliceville defeated Sumiton Christian 21-7 last year.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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