ANDERSON, Texas (KRHD) — The Anderson Shiro Fighting Owls hosted the Brazos High School Cougars for a controlled scrimmage as both teams look to build momentum heading into the regular season, now just one week away.
For Anderson Shiro, head coach Brad Hodges is counting on his rising seniors to fill the void left by a talented departing class.
"Positive and a negative, they've been able to see and learn from those guys, um, and not be just thrown into the fire right away, and now it's their time to step up. They have the talent to do so. Now they've got to add the intangibles to it and have that leadership that you're talking about," Hodges said.
That leadership will be tested in close games. Last season, the Fighting Owls dropped several one-score contests, including a stretch of 3 losses by a combined 4 points.
"Every year you're going to deal with some adversity in one way or another. You know, we go through 3 weeks straight where we lose 3 games by a total of 4 points. I've never had anything like that happen in my career and so it was, it was insane, but I was really proud of how our guys responded to that. We still found a way to scrap and fight our way into the playoffs," Hodges said.
For players on both rosters, growing up together in smaller communities has helped build the kind of chemistry that is difficult to teach.
"Growing up with all the teammates, you know, it kind of helps, uh, when you get up into the high school level to kind of be on the same page with everything you're doing and, uh, not be one person doing," senior Ryder Price said.
The Cougars open their season at Caldwell. The Fighting Owls open against Love Lady.
