By Kyle Roberts
ALEXANDRIA, La. — It’s a sign of a top-quality football program when experiencing a loss is a rarity.
Such is the case for the Ruston High Bearcats (6-1, 1-1 District 2-5A), whose seniors experienced only their third loss in three seasons playing on varsity Friday in a 26-21 loss to rival Neville High School in the Bearcats’ return to Hoss Garrett Stadium after four-straight weeks on the raod.
But with that comes the need to bounce back — and it won’t be easy with the next team up in District 2-5A: the Alexandria Trojans (7-0, 2-0 District 2-5A), who boast a high-scoring offense and is unbeaten this season.
“This group of guys hasn’t lost many ballgames,” Ruston High head coach Jerrod Baugh said of his Bearcats. “They’re not used to this, which is a good thing. But on the flip side, you’ve got to learn how to deal with that when you lose in the regular season; you’ve got to get things back together and learn from it.”
Neville and Ruston had a showdown for the ages Friday as the Tigers held on at the end for a one-score victory. Baugh admitted the loss was frustrating given how good Neville is and feeling like the Bearcats did not play their best while being so close.
“We feel like we hung in there with a really good football team and didn’t play a good game,” Baugh said. “That’s tough to swallow. Hopefully, we’ll shake back and finish this week strong, be mentally prepared and ready to go play down there tonight.”
The Trojans are averaging 49 points per contest this year on offense, with sophomore quarterback Karsen Sellers having thrown 17 touchdowns and no interceptions. Senior running back JT Lindsey accounts for 1,169 yards rushing and 16 touchdowns on the ground. Through a combined air and ground game, ASH’s offense will be a great challenge for Ruston’s defense.
“They’re really good scheme-wise,” Baugh said. “Coach (Thomas) Bachman does an excellent job to how they’ll run the ball against you, and then in the throwing game, their quarterback is really skilled. You do the best you can to manage that. If we put them in third-and-long situations, then you have to get your defense off the field. They’re going to use some tempo-offense, and hopefully, we’re in good enough shape to handle that. You can’t sustain yourself if they’re able to get in their groove over and over again.”
Ruston is no slouch on offense, either. Senior tailbacks Dylone Brooks and Jordan Hayes have combined for nearly 1,000 yards rushing and nine touchdowns, while senior quarterback Josh Brantley has 395 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on the ground. Brantley has also through for 945 yards and eight TDs this season.
Defensively, Baugh expects ASH to have a solid defense and is counting on his Bearcats to put together multi-play scoring drives to keep the ball out away from the Trojan offense.
“We have to put drives together and avoid three-and-outs,” Baugh said. “They have a very good defensive unit and play well together. They’re well-coached, and they’re going to be where they need to be in order to defend you; you’re not going to catch them making a mistake.”
Ruston and ASH will kickoff at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Q94.1 FM and streamed on BearcatNationNetwork.com.
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