Liberty-Eylau preparing to face first district opponent

TEXARKANA, TX (KTAL/KMSS) — Liberty-Eylau has its first district matchup this week, on the road against Tatum.

The Leopards are coming off a bye week, but head coach Brad Willard said he still expected his young team to come out and be physical each day, despite it being a week of “rest”.

The team met the challenge Willard set out for them.

“Asking kids on a by week to come ready to work, just on a Friday in general, when you don’t have a game, it can be tough, but our kids answered, it was a lot of fun,” Willard said. “That’s what we love about, especially the youth that we have on the team is that they’re all just a bunch of football players. They’re not just good athletes playing the sport, they love the sport. They understand the sport, and want to keep getting better.”

Liberty-Eylau’s district has traditionally been one of the toughest in East Texas, with each team posing a threat. With the Tatum Eagles up next on the schedule, the Leopards could not let momentum die from their first win the week prior.

The Leopards’ prep has been more hands-on and situational as they prepare for Tatum’s rather misdirection-heavy offense.

“Against an offense like that, you have to be disciplined. You have to line up correctly, first and foremost. So we got a couple of different things in practice to really help our guys do that, and if we stay disciplined, we like our chances,” Willard said.

The Leopards kick off at 7 pm on Friday, October 3 at Tatum High School.