When Block hosts Vidalia at 7 p.m. tonight, a lack of familiarity between the teams shouldn’t be a problem. For starters, each team got a shot to see the other play at Saturday’s jamboree where Block beat Trinity and Vidalia overcame Ferriday.

But there’s more. Vidalia head coach Dee Faircloth and Block head coach Chad Harkins live on the same block of their street in Vidalia. They know each other well, and tonight their teams will face each other in the season opener for both squads.

Last week at Vidalia’s jamboree, the Vikings won a thriller over Ferriday. Vidalia running back/wide receiver Demack Bates scored a touchdown as time expired to take a 6-0 victory over his team’s rival to the east.

But for most of the game, the Vikings struggled against a tough Ferriday defense. Vidalia had just 61 yards of total offense and four first downs in the 24-minute game. On the other side of the ball, the Viking defense used a bend-but-don’t-break mentality to prevent Ferriday from scoring despite 110 yards of offense.

For its part, Block destroyed an undermanned Cathedral squad that lost its starting quarterback early in the first half of their game at Saturday’s jamboree. The Block offense was hitting on all cylinders as the Bears won the game 36-6. Running back Johnny Lee ran for 148 yards on six carries including two touchdown runs of 55 and 66 yards respectively.

The Bears are sure to have a tougher time against a Vidalia squad that is extremely deep. Block beat up on an overmatched Cathedral squad, but the Vikings should provide a better yardstick with which to determine the Bears’ chances for success this season.

Franklin Parish at Ferriday

In the other big Louisiana matchup, there are a few more unknowns.

Ferriday has a big test tonight at 7 p.m. against Franklin Parish, a large 4A school with a roster of more than 80 players. The game will be the season opener for both squads.

Last week at the Vidalia jamboree, Ferriday outplayed Vidalia for virtually the entire game, moving the ball with some effectiveness and virtually stopping the Viking offense cold. But an inability to throw the ball stalled the Trojan offense as Vidalia used the blitz to shut down the Ferriday passing game.

&uot;We’ve been working on the offensive line,&uot; McFarland said. &uot;The blitz hurt us a lot (last week against Vidalia). That and the passing game. I don’t know if we completed a past last week because of that blitz.&uot;

In fact, Ferriday quarterback Scotty Cage was completed three passes for 15 yards in the game, though he was harassed frequently by the Viking defense, including a fourth-down sack deep inside Vidalia territory that ended Ferriday’s best scoring chance.

Franklin Parish is an unknown quantity this year, though McFarland says the tape he has seen of Franklin was remarkable for at least one thing &045;&045; the size of its roster.

&uot;(I know) they’re big and have good numbers. Our field and our stadium, may not hold all of them,&uot; McFarland said. &uot;They run the ball well and they’re physical.&uot;

One thing is for sure. McFarland and his players are ready to hit the field for a real game and get the sour taste from Saturday’s jamboree out of their mouths.

&uot;(This time) it’s a real game, four quarters. We’re ready to see what we can do.&uot;