FERRIDAY — When someone asks you a question, it is usually expected of you to answer.

When Ferriday High School head coach Freddie Harrison asks his team, “Can we?” the response he hopes for is one that reflects confidence.

“(That’s) the motto I’m going by,” Harrison said. “Can we finish, can we compete, can we do the things that we need to do?”

Coming off a season in which there were several second-half letdowns, Harrison is using this question to make the point that, because the team has so many question marks, those question marks will need to be filled if the Trojans are going to have more success in the third and fourth quarters.

Senior running back Bobby Madison said the team has been given an increased workload to help them perform better late in the game.

“(We’ve been doing) more running,” Madison said. “We couldn’t finish last year. Now we’re trying to finish.”

This year’s Trojans team will have only five seniors. The bulk of the team will be juniors and freshman, Harrison said.

“Everything rolls back over to those same guys who were out here last year,” Harrison said. “Do they know how to handle themselves in pressure situations? Do they know how to perform in pressure situations?”

As one of the few seniors on the team, Madison knows just how important it is for him to step up as a leader, both on and off the field.

“It’s a lot of hard work — hard work in the classroom,” Madison said. “I can’t get anywhere without grades.”

Harrison attributes last season’s second-half troubles to inexperience and a lack of mental preparation, something that can be addressed by doing mental drills, Harrison said.

“We just have to try and make sure we’re mentally tough as a team,” Harrison said. “If you’re mentally tough, you can get over any hump.”

The Trojans have been practicing just one week, but Harrison said he likes what he’s seen from his team so far.

“(Wednesday was) the first day we can put pads on,” Harrison said. “You really can’t tell without the pads on, but right now I can see that we have a lot of intensity, a lot of want-to, a lot of kids wanting to get the job done, and that’s basically what we’re trying to figure out. Are those kids really serious about what they’re doing this season?”

Staying healthy is the main key to the season, Harrison said, but the battle of field position looks to be just as important for the Trojans this fall.

“We’ve got to win in the kicking game,” Harrison said. “We’re not as strong there, but we have got to win in the kicking game. We also have to make sure our defense and offense execute when the opportunity presents itself.”