By HARRIET PROTHRO PENROD, Journal Sports
(NOTE – Each Tuesday this season, the SBJ spotlights the staff’s selection as the local “Team of the Week.”)
After losing at home in a mudfest against Neville in their season-opener, the Evangel Eagles rallied on the road with a 42-38 victory over Mansfield last Friday night. The win earned Evangel a spot in the Shreveport-Bossier Journal Top 10 (No. 10) and the title of SBJ “Team of the Week.”
“The first week (against Class 4A powerhouse Neville, which made it to the semifinals of the playoffs last season), we couldn’t get anything going because of the mud,” says Evangel coach Denny Duron. “Neville didn’t complete a pass. Our kids played physical, just not as fundamentally sound as we could have.
“Against Mansfield, we were able to run our offense.”
In the Week 2 matchup, penalties and turnovers created problems for both the Eagles and Wolverines in the first half. While both teams put three touchdowns on the board, Mansfield took a 24-21 lead into halftime thanks to three 2-point conversions.
“We had our struggles (in the first half),” says Duron. “Penalties – that kind of thing – more than anything else.”
With some adjustments made at halftime – and fewer mistakes – the Eagles came out in the third quarter and converted on three scoring drives to take a 42-24 lead.
“Our offensive coordinator, Kramer Hagen, did a great job focusing on the things we were going to be able to do and doing those things,” Duron said after the game. “He just came in and simplified it and we took the things they were giving us.”
One of those things was single coverage, which Evangel quarterback Peyton Fulghum used to the Eagles’ advantage. Fulghum — who had connected with Garret Burns for a 16-yard touchdown pass in the first half — opened the third-quarter scoring with a 1-yard run, then threw a 9-yard scoring pass to his brother, Parker Fulghum.
When DaShawn Johnson scored on a 25-yard touchdown run (his second rushing TD of the game), the Eagles had opened up the 18-point lead. Despite two touchdowns by Mansfield in the fourth quarter, Evangel was able to run out the clock and secure the victory.
After two rough seasons, when Evangel went 0-8 in 2020 and 3-8 last year, the Eagles are looking to get back to the days when they were a national powerhouse.
When asked about returning to the “glory days,” Duron is quick to point out that Evangel is closer than people might imagine.
“Some of our best teams have been in the last 5-6 years, probably our best defenses,” he says. “Back in the ‘glory days,’ we never had an injury. We never lost a quarterback. We probably could have won three (championships), but we lost three quarterbacks and three tailbacks.”
So, just where are the Eagles in relation to their dominating teams of the past?
“This week will answer questions about where we are,” Duron says of the Eagles, who will play host to Westgate, the defending Class 4A state champion and the current No.1-ranked team by the LSWA, on Friday night.
“We’re fired up to play No. 1,” adds Duron. “They’re a great football team. They’re the elite when it comes to our division. The key is that we will need to execute. We can’t have turnovers.”
Contact Harriet at sbjharriet@gmail.com