Red Bay returning to Huntsville
By Staff
Scot Beard
RED BAY – The last time Red Bay traveled to Huntsville for a football game it got a rude awakening in an 18-7 loss to Lee-Huntsville.
The Tigers could have another fight on their hands when they return to the Rocket City for their region opener against Westminster Christian Academy.
The Wildcats' defense had a strong outing in its opener against St. Bernard last week, earning a 59-0 shutout.
"We don't know a whole lot about them," Red Bay coach Dale Jeffreys said. "We only have one tape on them and they didn't show a lot."
Jeffreys said the key to avoiding a second straight disappointment in Huntsville is to find something that works on offense.
The Tigers struggled to complete passes and had difficulty sustaining drives against Lee.
Jeffreys said the offense made four trips deep into Lee territory that stalled before the Tigers could put any points on the board.
"We've got to find something on offense we can do every Friday night," Jeffreys said. "We have to go back and work on things we did in the past that helped us."
The challenge for Red Bay this week might not be as bad as it seems.
First, Lee is a Class 5A school and Red Bay is a 2A school. Lee had more depth and players with more experience, so there was a bit of a mismatch in last week's game.
Second, while Westminster dominated St. Bernard, Red Bay has much more talent than the Saints.
St. Bernard has only 17 players and the starting lineup features several seventh graders.
Westminster did defeat Madison Academy during a 7-on-7 game this summer, but 7-on-7 is rarely a good indicator of how a team will perform in the regular season.
Westminster only won a few games last season, but the Wildcats have been building for this year.
If the Tigers want to return from Huntsville with a region win, Jeffreys said there are a few areas the team needs to improve in before that can happen.
"We need to do a better job of picking up what the defense is, Jeffreys said. "We did a good job on defense, but our trouble was on the other side of the ball. Hopefully we've cured a few of those things."
