By T. Scott Boatright
Lincoln Prep football coach Chaunce Davison is channeling his inner Lou Holtz this week as his Panthers get set for their Homecoming game against Plain Dealing.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. today at Panthers Field.
A former college football coaching great, Holtz once said, “Life is 10% what happens to you and ninety percent how you respond to it.”
After seeing his Panthers fall 65-32 last week at Cedar Creek, Davison is hoping his team responds in strong fashion against the Lions, who enter the game at 0-8 after having been outscored 398-18 so far this season.
At 3-5 overall, the Panthers are currently ranked 25th in Louisiana Class 1A football, which means they still have a solid shot at earning one of the 24 Division IV Select School playoff berths.
That means it has come down to a two-game season for the Panthers.
“This is going to be a test of who we are — who this team is inside,” Davison said. “We’re taking things week-by-week. It starts with getting a W against Plain Dealing. It shouldn’t be hard for the team to get fired up for Homecoming. Then we close out against our rival Arcadia, another game we won’t have trouble getting fired up for.
“So we still have a lot to play for. We just have to put Cedar Creek behind us. That game is in the past. We have to take what we learned from that and keep pushing forward.”
Offense wasn’t the problem last week against Cedar Creek. It was the Panthers defense that struggled, and Davison hopes it was a lesson learned that will be remembered against Plain Dealing.
“We can’t go in over-confident,” Davison said. “We have to go knowing we have to take care of business, no matter who we’re playing and what their record is. We didn’t do that against Cedar Creek. We didn’t take care of business.
“Our players have to know their assignments. If we have a chance to tackle somebody, we have to make that tackle. We have to take care of our assignments first, and then we have to swarm to the football. We have to stay focused and take care of the mental part of the game.”
Offensively, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Panthers look toward the pass a little more than they were earlier this season.
Lincoln Prep had its most success against Cedar Creek through the air.
With sophomore quarterback Josh Kelly making only his third start, the Panthers connected on on 13-of–21 pass attempts for 269 yards, including scoring strikes of 51 and 60 yards to Trey Spann, 60 yards to Jarbari Levingston
Levingston, who has five interceptions on the season defensively, is Lincoln Prep’s rushing leader with 489 yards on the season and added receiving to his offensive repertoire last week with five receptions for 122 yards.
Something Davison will be looking for against Plain Dealing is a fast start for his Panthers, who have struggled at times to find early scores, even in games they have convincingly won.
“We know what it feels like to be hit in the mouth early and let it get away from us,” Davison said. “We need to be the team coming out early and punching — punching hard. If we get the chance, we have to put the ball in the end zone. We have to score. We don’t want to be playing from behind. We want to be playing with a lead for most of the game, and we need to make sure we play hard on every play from start to finish.”
“This is a young team overall and they’re still learning. One of the things they’re learning is focusing. They have to learn to focus from start to finish. They have to learn to stay focused even when something doesn’t go their way. We still have a lot to play for. But it all starts with Plain Dealing. We need to put on a good show for Homecoming and get the win we need.”
The Lions, who are in the midst of a 41 game losing streak dating back to 2021, are led by first-year coach Jerry Byrd, a former Louisiana Tech Bulldog who stepped down from a seven-year role as principal at Byrd High School.
Byrd had previously served as head coach at North Caddo (twice, from 2003-05 and 2012-13), North DeSoto (2006-07), and Huntington (2008).
