Don’t get Sean Harrison wrong because the Heritage Academy football coach was pleased with his team’s performance Friday night.
After all, when you outscore Simpson Academy 13-0 in one quarter and tie Madison St. Joseph 8-8 in another quarter, any coach would come away pretty happy with an effort like that.
But Harrison doesn’t want the Patriots to get too overconfident about those two quarters because he knows bad things happen when a team doesn’t play with an edge. He hopes to find that mentality this week in practice as the team continues its preparations for its season opener against Columbus Christian Academy at 7 p.m. Friday.
“I saw the main thing I wanted to see. I wanted to a better performance than the scrimmage (against Pillow Academy),” Harrison said. “I told the team (Monday) during film that we have the big picture. They know offensively and defensively what we’re trying to do. They know how to lined up. They know where they’re supposed to go. Now, we’re just into the details.”
The “details” Harrison is referring to are holding a block that will turn a 20-yard gain into a touchdown, or hitting a big run two more steps to the left so it turns into a score.
Harrison, who coached last season at Wayne Academy, has brought a faster tempo to the Patriots. He said he liked what he saw from the Patriots’ offense with seniors Tyler Anderson and Zach Oswalt under center. He said Heritage Academy also showed an ability to get behind its senior-leaden offensive line and control the clock. Harrison said the scrimmage was the first time the Patriots varied the tempo. Prior to that, he said the team was going at a faster pace.
Harrison said earlier this month that his team would go as its offensive line goes, so its ability to hold the football for a 17-play drive against Simpson Academy was a highlight.
“I told you before we have a chance to be really good up front,” Harrison said. “Once again in flashes they showed it. We controlled the ball. We had a 17-play series and a 13- or 14-play series, so we went on some drives where there were 4 yards and a cloud of dust and we got it done. I was happy with that.
“(The 17-play drive) reinforced my confidence in them. It has been four years since I went on drives like that. Like you said, it was a jamboree, but that was really impressive. They were able to keep their focus and finish both drives with touchdowns.”
Harrison said Simpson Academy ran only five plays, so it was tough to get an indication of how his defense performed. Heritage Academy surrendered an interception for a touchdown against Madison St. Joseph. He said the Patriots’ defense performed well in that quarter, which gives him reason to be optimistic that unit can perform equally well Friday against the Rams, a Class A-AA team in the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS). Heritage Academy is a AAA school in the MAIS.
Last season, Heritage Academy defeated Columbus Christian 48-0. Harrison said he doesn’t want the Patriots to read too much into their performances in the jamboree because he knows there is ample room for improvement. He also doesn’t want the Patriots looking past the Rams based on last season’s result. That’s why he was blunt when assessing the positives and negatives from last weekend.
“If that is the best we play all year, we’re not going to be very good,” Harrison said. “I told them that if that is the best we play we’re going to get beat. They understand that. They’re a mature group.
“These guys know how to win. It is expecting to win. When I hear them talking about our schedule, they will say, ‘We’re going to kill them’ and others it is ‘I don’t know.’ I want them to expect to win every one because they’re capable of it. Whether we do or not is a different story, but I would like them to expect it.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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