NATCHEZ — When the Adams County Christian football team kicks off its season Friday night, it will do so without a metaphorical blindfold around its players’ eyes.

The Rebels had a chance to watch the opponent for their home opener, CENLA Christian Academy, in the Copiah Jamboree last Thursday. Assistant coach Hunter McKeivier said getting a chance to scout CENLA Christian has helped give the coaching staff a better idea of what to expect.

“The advantage (in seeing them) is we get an idea of what kind of athletes they have. The catch is, they get to do the same for us,” McKeivier said.

“We did get to see how they schemed and things like that. Usually you’re going into your first game blind, but this year we’ve both had a chance to see one another.”

ACCS dropped its first game in the Copiah Jamboree against River Oaks 21-0, and its second game against East Rankin 14-8. Missed assignments on both offense and defense caused problems in both games, McKeivier said, and the Rebels are working hard this week to correct those mistakes.

“Our defense is based on assignments to a particular gap. We’re a gap-control defense, and each player has certain things to take care of. If one person steps out of line, a whole area is wide open,” McKeivier said.

“It’s the same on offense. You’re assigned to make certain blocks, and if one person misses a block, the whole thing breaks down.

“Because of that, we’ve been stressing being mentally prepared and going at it 110 miles an hour. If you’re going full speed and you mess up, we can deal with that. If you’re messing up going at it slow, that’s where we have a lot of problems.”

Getting the players excited about playing in their first game won’t be a problem though, according to senior receiver Daniel Guedon.

“We’re pumped. We had some good three-a-days and we’re fired up and ready for our first game,” Guedon said.

“In three-a-days, we probably ran about 40 to 60 sprints a day, and we’ve been practicing since July 29, so we’ve been working hard and working at full speed.”

The Rebels will host CENLA Christian at 7 Friday evening.