By Kyle Roberts
Here’s a fun thought exercise: imagine I had told you this past summer that the Ruston Bearcats, after the season they had last year, wouldn’t be playing in the first round of the playoffs in 2022.
How quickly would you have sent me to a neurologist to make sure I was okay?
Turns out, of course, that’s the exact scenario the team is facing this year, except it’s for all the absolute right reasons: the Ruston Bearcats finished 9-1 in the regular season against difficult competition nearly week in and week out and earned the top number one seed in the Non-Select Division I playoff bracket.
And with new rules voted on by the LHSAA right after week two, the top four seeds in postseason play in this division have earned a first round bye.
Walking up to Bearcat practice on Wednesday afternoon, though, you would have been forgiven if you thought Ruston had a game tonight: head coach Jerrod Baugh had his entire squad fully engaged and practicing with the intensity of a normal week and as if a playoff opponent were on the schedule a mere 48 hours later.
“Obviously, it modifies some things,” Baugh said about the bye week. “It gave us an opportunity to get some time off on Saturday, which we have done periodically through the regular season. We came back in for video on Monday, we lifted weights, and came back to practice in helmets that afternoon. It went really well. They got Tuesday off because school was out, but we watched film (on Wednesday) of the West Monroe game and had a padded practice today. We’re working on situational things right now, like down-and-distance, two-point plays, last play of the ballgame scenarios and game winning field goals. We’ll work on our throwing game and have a big conditioning plan for them to simulate a ballgame. We want to stay up to speed and in playing shape. We’ll let them go home Friday afternoon, and then get into our game routine on Saturday morning.”
Tomorrow, Ruston will know the outcome of the No. 16 Hahnville/No. 17 Ouachita first round game. The winner will advance to be hosted by a rested Ruston team in the second round. The coaches will have a plenty of video to watch of their opponent for Saturday when the Bearcats get ready to review.
“Normally on Saturday, you come in and review the previous night’s game,” Baugh said. “So it will be a jumpstart for us. We’ll be able to get ahead of the week.”
When asked about reflecting on last week’s win over West Monroe and snapping a 32-year losing streak, Baugh acknowledged the gravity of the moment but also shared the sentiment for keeping his players focused on the end goal of winning a state title.
“It was very special,” Baugh said. “I’ve taken the tune and pressed off on the kids that once the season is over, let’s do the reminiscing about the effect that ballgame had. I don’t know that they have fully acknowledged the enormity of what that means, and that’s probably a good thing right now. There will be a time at the end of the season for me to really think about it, and I want to do that at some point. I just don’t think now is the time. We just have to push forward. My message has been consistent all along, and probably too frequent, and that’s staying focused on what we need to do.”
Right now, that’s moving forward to keep getting better and winning a state championship.
“I’ve said all year, and I keep saying it: our focus needs to be improving on the things we didn’t do well last Friday,” Baugh said. “I think we’ve come out here and done that this week. It doesn’t matter whether you’re on a bye, or it’s Hahnville or Ouachita or whoever it is, there are things we need to come out here and work on regardless of who it is we play.”
The postseason officially begins tonight and even with Ruston having the night off, it’s still business as usual: keep working daily to be the top team in the entire state.
That strategy has paid off so far this year, and the Bearcats are only four wins away from a state championship.
