Matt Vines

EAST POINT – Football fans in Red River Parish won’t have to wait until September to watch football games that count in the standings.

Riverdale Academy kicks off its season at home against Prairie View Academy on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The Midsouth Association of Independent Schools takes its traditional early start ahead of the LHSAA, positioning this brand of football in the spotlight.

The Rebels will be testing their youth this season as eight seniors departed from a squad that won nine games this past year and advanced to the MAIS Championship Game in 2022.

“We do only have two seniors this year, but I’ve been really impressed with what our younger guys have done in the weightroom this summer,” said Riverdale coach Nathan Edie. “Our seventh graders especially have come in and put in a lot of work.

“A lot of our players have summer jobs, so we have a flexible schedule to fit in as much weights as we can.”

One facet that will benefit Riverdale is the participation in spring football for the first time in program history.

That laid the groundwork for a younger team to adapt to new roles.

Ashton Almond shifts from tight end to quarterback with other returning veterans like linemen Logan Gryder and Ben Mosley and running back Kaidyn Williams.

Like many private schools navigating an economy that’s experienced high inflation, sheer numbers has been an issue.

Riverdale has 17 players on its eight-man football roster with five of those being seventh and eighth graders.

That means coaches limit contact in practice to avoid injury.

“We try and keep full contact with our offensive and defensive lines, but we don’t make wide open tackles against each other,” Edie explained. “A lot of private schools are dealing with the same problems.”
Prairie View Academy isn’t exactly in the same boat as the Spartans carry around 30 players on their roster. A young team put together a 6-5 record with a playoff appearance this past season, and Edie said this bunch will only get better with experience.

“They are still sort of young in that they don’t have a lot of seniors, but these are guys who do have a good bit of experience,” Edie said. “They are athletic and have some big boys, and stamina will be a key for us.”

But Riverdale’s established winning culture could help counter Prairie View’s numbers advantage.
The Rebels have won at least nine games in each of the last four seasons, and they don’t have any plans to change that course.

“With it being the first game, we always want to look at what we did wrong and what we did right,” Edie said. “We want to focus on the little things like limiting our mistakes and penalties.”