FERRIDAY — Huntington plays host to the good but troubled CENLA Christian Academy Lions tonight at 7.

CENLA head coach Eric Middleton was fired earlier this week due to “fundamental differences in coaching philosophies.” Junior high coach Bobby Curtis was named interim head coach.

“We really don’t know what to expect from them,” Huntington head coach Chad Harkins said. “We’ve heard that players have left because of their coach getting fired.”

According to The Town Talk newspaper in Alexandria, CENLA’s roster had dwindled from 37 players to 23 as of Thursday afternoon. Of those leaving was star running back Centarius Donald.

“It’s tough for us to prepare because we don’t know who they are putting out there,” Harkins said.

CENLA upset Glenbrook Academy 42-31 last week. Glenbrook was ranked No. 4 in the MPSA’s Class A.

“Before this week, they were looked at as the favorite to win district after that win,” Harkins said. “A win could put us in good shape as far as district play is concerned.”

Harkins said from the scouting tapes he had seen, CENLA is an impressive team that works hard on the field and gets after the ball.

“They have good passing game,” Harkins said. “They throw the ball 30 or more times.”

The Hounds have been working on pass defense this week to get prepared.

“They throw the ball more than anyone else we have faced,” Harkins said. “Our pass coverage is weak but we are improving.”

On offense the Hounds have been working on the offensive line and incorporating a few passes into the scheme.

“We haven’t played consistent on the offensive line,” Harkins said. “We passed the ball a few times last week and plan to continue doing it to keep other defenses off balanced.”

The Hounds rebounded after a tough loss to Trinity to defeat Tensas Academy 34-8.

Jody Cottongin rushed for 221 yards on 20 attempts.

“Our goal is to com out and jump on them quick,” Harkins said.