By JOURNAL STAFF
Booker T. Washington and Woodlawn have been playing each other for some time going back to years in the original District 1-AAA.
Tonight, both teams will meet up — with one of them getting its first win of the season and being among the leaders in District 1-4A. In fact, the last time the two schools competed against each other when 1-AAAA was in the top classification in 1990, Woodlawn won the district and BTW finished second. The previous year the two tied for the district title.
Both schools have been in and out of the same district for many years since. BTW’s best finish since came in 2005 when it tied with Benton for first in District 1-3A and was second the year before and after. Woodlawn won 1-4A in 2016, the year before BTW moved up and rejoined the district.
BTW (0-3) vs. Woodlawn (0-3), Independence Stadium
Series: Woodlawn 29-17
Last year: Woodlawn 38-16
Last week: BTW lost to Green Oaks 28-6; Woodlawn lost to Red River 39-8
Rankings: none
Radio: none
Notable: The Castle went dark on Tuesday as a power outage caused the school to close early … Woodlawn and their opponent this week – BTW – are looking for their first win of the season … Knights head coach Thedrick Harris and his staff had a little extra time to prepare for BTW. Woodlawn played last Thursday while BTW played Green Oaks in the Soul Bowl on Saturday … It looked like Woodlawn’s offensive woes may have been over early in their game against Red River. The Knights took an 8-0 lead in the game before the Bulldogs pulled away and won 39-8.
After three games of playing against Class 3A and 2A competition, the Lions will play against District 1-4A competition for the rest of the season … Since resuming the series in 2013, BTW is 2-7 against Woodlawn, but has won two of the last three games played against the Knights … This will be BTW’s first game away from Leonard C. Barnes Stadium when the Lions travel to Independence Stadium for the first of two road games … Offensive problems came back to haunt the Lions in the loss to Green Oaks. A week after scoring 36 points, BTW could only get one touchdown in Week 3 … The injury bug is also becoming a problem for the Lions. Running back Deaviante Davis is out with a toe injury.
Loyola (0-3) at Red River (1-2)
Series: Loyola 3-2
Last year: Loyola 31-28
Last week: Loyola lost to North DeSoto 49-7; Red River beat Woodlawn 39-8
Rankings: none
Radio: none
Notable: Loyola will be going up against Red River and seeking to avoid its first 0-4 start since 2005 … Red River is coached by Jeff Harper, a former Loyola assistant. The Bulldogs’ defensive coordinator is Alan Carter, who twice served as Loyola head coach and spent 12 years on the Flyer sidelines … Senior linebacker Gray Deason has had 11 tackles in all three of Loyola games to lead the team with 33 … This is Loyola’s last game before a bye week. The Flyers had not had a regularly scheduled bye week since 1995 (weather and pandemic caused the others).
Ringgold (0-3) at Plain Dealing (0-3)
Series: Plain Dealing 21-4
Last year: Plain Dealing 38-6
Last week: Ringgold lost to Tensas 28-14; Plain Dealing lost to Lakeside 46-6
Rankings: none
Radio: none
Notable: The last time the Lions won a game was eight games ago against Ringgold in a 38-6 win … Covid wiped out the scheduled game in 2020 … PD has won nine straight with Ringgold’s last win coming in 2009 … Quarterback Josh Miller hit Jayden Ray for the Lions only score last week against Lakeside … Aaron Reddix leads PD in rushing on the season with 211 yards and a couple of touchdowns.
Homer (2-1) at Magnolia (0-3)
Series: Homer 3-0
Last year: Homer 67-6
Last week: Homer beat General Trass 49-24; Magnolia lost to East Iberville 51-6
Rankings: Homer is No. 2 in LSWA 1A poll
Radio: none
Notable: The Mariners, looking for their first win since Sept. 24, 2021, will have their work cut out for them against the Pelicans – the No. 2-ranked team by LSWA and the defending Class 1A state champions … Magnolia quarterback Mark McCray has been the bright spot in the Mariners’ offense – running for the Mariners’ only TD in Week 1 against Lake Charles Prep, throwing two TDs in Week 2 (to DeAndre and DeVondre Johnson) at General Trass, and connecting with Travis Sanders for the only score last week at East Iberville … Magnolia has been outscored by its first three opponents 154-30.
