Matt Vines

COUSHATTA – Red River is known for testing its mettle with some of Northwest Louisiana’s finest in non-district play.

The Class 2A Bulldogs have routinely scheduled games against Class 4A and Class 5A opponents – in 2023 Red River faced Haughton, Parkway and Woodlawn with a side quest against Loyola Prep.

But Red River’s playoff trip down to No. 7 seed Pine (a 38-16 loss) showed first-year coach Byron Keller that perhaps his Bulldogs might handle a longer road trip better if they took a couple during the regular season.

So Red River put trips to small-school powers like Catholic-Pointe Coupee, Oak Grove, White Castle and Class 5A Pineville on the slate for this coming season.

“We wanted to play schools that were closer to our size,” said Keller, who . “We’re still playing great competition, but this way we’re also learning how to execute travel as well.

“I think it’d be beneficial for our players to get out and see different parts of the state. We’ll get a true measure of where we are against schools more our size.”

A 3-8 Red River squad did compete relatively well against the bigger schools on last year’s slate – a 10-point loss to Woodlawn, a 17-point loss to Loyola and a 20-point loss to Haughton in which Red River’s offense scored 28 points in two of those contests.

A team buoyed by 14 seniors, including running back Terrell Gary and defensive stalwart Reginald Prealow, will be missed, but Keller said a young crop of guys are emerging at different positions on the field.

“We have guys that can step in,” Keller said. “We’ve got five running backs that we’re confident in, and even though our offensive and defensive lines are mostly freshmen and sophomores, they are playing well right now.

“We have a lot to look forward to.”

Red River participated in a trio spring game with Mansfield and Logansport, two teams who beat Red River this past season. The Bulldogs did go toe-to-toe in a 38-34 regular-season loss to a Class 1A Tigers squad that were the Division IV Non-Select No. 1 seed and a semifinalist.

“We played a fast-paced spring game where we saw different types of offenses and defenses,” Keller said. “We were able to make adjustments and had a lot of high points in the spring game and throughout our nine spring practices.

“Our classes went into the first couple weeks of June, so we’re just now getting true summer workouts that are more spread out and not right after school.”

Keller lauded his defensive backs specifically for their improvement this spring. That unit features a pair of basketball players (Jomello McDonald and Warren Bowman) who led the Bulldogs to a state title appearance this past season.

“That unit is playing really well, and I’m proud of the improvement they’ve made,” Keller said. “Our quarterback Malique Smith has also made a lot of strides and is throwing the ball well in 7-on-7s.”