by Tim Smith
Head Coach Jacob Angevine and the rest of the Cedar Creek football coaching staff were very ready for their kids to line up against some players in a different-colored helmet. That chance came last night with the Warriors from Lakeside High, and there was much to be happy about.
“I think we started a little slow, we kind of dipped our toe in the water. It was our M.O. last year because we were so young,” said Angevine.
The Cougars are still young; about three-fourths of the squad are freshmen and sophomores.
“I love the intensity that we had,” Coach Angevine said with a smile on his face. “We have a lot of film. It’s going to be great to watch and see what we have.”
The Class 2A Warriors arrived as a larger, deeper opponent whose players generally don’t have to play both ways. Despite the disadvantage, the Cougar staff felt there were more positives than negatives to take away from their performance.
The Cougar roster has grown from 36 players last year to 47 this year, giving the Cougars more depth, albeit young.
The Cougars have senior quarterback Brett Bell returning to run the offense. Bell, building on his experience from last year, will be a key weapon for the Cougars as a passer and a runner. But maybe the most important thing he brings is his leadership. Angevine praised Bell for his ability to assume a larger role in the huddle and in the locker room.
Payton Harris, coming off an amazing freshman year, is a bigger, faster and more experienced version of himself as a sophomore.
Harris exploded through the line on his first carry, showing elusiveness and an ability to break tackles that may have been one of his few weaknesses last year.
“He’s lightning in a bottle,” exclaimed Angevine. “He is going to be a big part of what we do offensively, and we plan to get him more involved defensively too.”
Defensively for the Cougars, there were also some promising things to take from this scrum. Interceptions by Bell and Micah Taylor show that the Cougars are picking up right where they left off last year. Cornerback Taylor, older, bigger and more experienced, is apt to appear on wanted posters across North Louisiana for forward pass larceny.
Other players making an impression in the August heat included the return of Liam Durrett after missing much of last season due to injury. Receivers Case Phillips and Cohen Pottharst showed encouraging potential. Expect the Cougar passing game to improve as Bell is likely to become more and more accurate as the season progresses. With young and speedy freshmen like Kingston Culpepper and Cooper Lee, the future looks bright. Both had impressive playing time in last night’s scrimmage.
Luke Thomas, younger brother of former Cougar great Lane Thomas, may have gone a long way toward a starting role for Cedar Creek. Luke’s aggressive play on defense was a bright spot for the Cougar faithful and for the coaches.
“I loved watching Luke Thomas play tonight,” said Coach Angevine. “Luke was a guy that was, you know, a little buried on the depth chart, but he made some big plays with the ‘two’ group, and he got bumped up to run with the ‘ones’ in that live quarter. It was a decision we made on the fly. He was a spark that we weren’t expecting.”
Angevine praised his coaching staff for having the guys ready to play. The work started in the spring, and the results are beginning to show.
First-team lineman Eddie Henry left the game with a knee injury, and second-team QB Aidan Haddox also left the field with a shoulder issue. Coach Angevine said he expects that both will return to play but will wait for medical evaluation.
“There definitely was more good than bad tonight,” added Angevine.
Cougar Nation can expect an exciting brand of football this season, and that was evident last night. Cedar Creek will host a jamboree with Caldwell Parish High and D’Arbonne Woods at Origin Bank Field next Friday, August 28. Game time TBA.
