Natchez High fine tuning game approach late in season
Published 12:00 am Friday, October 27, 2017
- Natchez High School quarterback Chris Scott, left, looks down field for an open receiver last Friday during an MHSAA football game in Natchez. The Bulldogs must win their final two games for a spot in the MHSAA Class 5A playoffs. (Nicole Hester | The Natchez Democrat)
After last week’s win over North Pike, Natchez High School football coach Roy Rigsby was not exactly jumping for joy.
The Bulldogs (5-4, 2-3) pulled out a 20-13 win to keep their playoff chances alive, but Rigsby said the game could have definitely gone in a different direction.
“The disappointment came from knowing our ability. We didn’t line up with execution,” he said. “You always learn, whether you win or lose. It’s far better to learn from a win than a loss, but I just know what they are capable of doing.”
Natchez will travel to Forest Hill (1-8, 0-5) at 7 p.m. tonight, looking at another elimination situation.
“It’s their homecoming, so I know they are going to be hyped up and do whatever it takes to win,” Rigsby said. “They don’t have any playoff implications, so they are trying to ruin ours.”
Rigsby said the biggest thing that the Bulldogs lacked last week was the ability to complete a drive. Natchez had five opportunities in the red zone in which it did not capitalize — three on missed field goals, and two on penalties that pushed it back too far to score.
“We left a lot of points on the field,” Rigsby said.
Despite the frustration, Rigsby wasted no time getting the Bulldogs back on track, instructing his players after the game they should be ready to work at the start of the practice week.
“They knew I was disappointed, and they were disappointed as well,” he said. “They came into this week with a more focused mindset. We started by recapping, analyzing ourselves and making corrections. The good part was that most of them knew what had to be corrected and where they didn’t execute.”
In Forest Hill, Rigsby said his team should expect to face a team that is not at all unfamiliar.
“They remind me of us last year, they have pieces even though they don’t really have a great record,” he said. “They have the athletes to beat you.”