For Block, Ferriday and Vidalia, things aren’t getting any easier. A week after Ferriday beat Block 25-13, both of those teams have their work cut out for them this week. The Vikings got a relatively easy 51-12 victory over Newellton, but this week Vidalia may have its hands full with Avoyelles.

Fortunately for those teams, they get a week off from pounding each other. On the down side, none of the teams looks to have an easy game this weekend.

Block has to face Jena, a team with far more players than Block, something Bears head coach Chad Harkins said he’s concerned about.

&uot;Jena’s 3A, so they’ll have more numbers than us,&uot; Harkins said. &uot;That’s the tough thing about facing some of these teams, they don’t have to play guys both ways like we do. Against them, it always seems like the game comes down the fourth quarter no matter who wins.&uot;

Block has beat Jena two of the past three years under Harkins, but Harkins said he expects the game to be close and to provide a good test of just how good his young team is.

In the loss to Ferriday, Harkins said his team simply made too many mistakes to compete with a good Trojan team.

&uot;We had a lot of mistakes (last week), too many mistakes,&uot; Harkins said. &uot;If we get a little better from our guys this week we should have a lot better showing,&uot; Harkins said.

The Bears are taking their lumps in the first few games and getting ready for the upcoming district season. For Block, that should mean a relatively easy march through a weak district. Delhi, Tallulah, Newellton and Davidson have combined for a 2-6 record over the first two weeks, and none of them looks to be a serious threat to knock off Block and take the District 4-1A championship this season.

&uot;Our district hasn’t really been powerful the last few years, and some of these schools may not even be playing any more (after this year),&uot; Harkins said. &uot;I think there’s going to be come consolidations and maybe realigning for a more competitive district.&uot;

That remains to be seen. Meanwhile, Block is getting ready for just one game: against Jena at 7 p.m. today.

Ferriday at Northeast

The Trojans will also face a tough test Friday in Northeast, a team that will bring something important to the table &045;&045; size.

&uot;They’re ranked No. 3 in their class and they’re big,&uot; McFarland said. &uot;They’re just so big on both sides of the ball. We’re going to try to use our quickness against their bigness.&uot;

Ferriday got its first win of the season last week over Block, moving the Trojan’s season record to 1-1.

&uot;We thought we’d get the win,&uot; McFarland said. &uot;But it was certainly good to win.&uot;

More importantly, Ferriday scored 25 points. In the opener against Franklin Parish, a 34-0 loss, and in a 6-0 loss in a jamboree game against Vidalia, the Trojans had been held scoreless. The 25 points against Block and the development of a young offense that had only three returning starters gives McFarland some reason to be optimistic about where his team will be as the season progresses.

&uot;We’ve been moving the ball with some consistency,&uot; McFarland said. &uot;With practice and a few more games, (the offense) is something we can fix.&uot;

Vidalia at Avoyelles

The Vikings have to feel good coming off a dominating 51-12 victory over Newellton. Vidalia even got a chance to give a number of younger players significant playing time in the second half of the win, something that can only help the Vikings, both this year and down the road.

And now the Vikings will head out on the road to face Avoyelles.

The Viking offense, led by quarterback Brett Hinson, looked electric against a weak Newellton defense, putting up 51 points with ease. Hinson threw a touchdown

Almost as impressive as the Viking offense was its defense, which held Newellton to just 12 points, six of which came on a late touchdown run with the second-string defense in the game for Vidalia. The defense even got into the act on scoring, getting two touchdowns on an interception return and fumble runback.