Matt Vines
COUSHATTA – The stage is set.

Red River may only be playing its second home game of the season Friday in Week 7, but the matchup with undefeated Lakeside will more than make up for the lack of home games.

The winner of Red River (2-4, 1-0 District 3-2A) and Lakeside (6-0 1-0) will have an inside track to the district title in a league in which Many has won the last 10 titles.

But the Warriors eventually pulled away from Many in a 28-6 victory this past week.

And Red River put its experience travelling across the state in five of its first six games to use when the Bulldogs outlasted Mansfield this past week in a 20-12 win.

The road win against an explosive Mansfield bunch (2-4, 0-1) sent a message – Red River is a legitimate title contender and a team capable of winning a playoff game.

“I feel that we are playing our best ball at the right time of the season,” said Red River coach Byron Keller. “The players are having fun.

“We teach resilience and to have a tough mindset to push through adversity and obstacles. Our players are proof of that philosophy.”

After missing key players at different points in the season, the Bulldogs started to put it all together after having Jomello McDonald and Montreveun Smith together for the first time in recent weeks. Add them to versatile weapon Warren Bowman, and defenses struggle to account for all three players at the same time.

McDonald caught a touchdown pass and anchored a defensive backfield that held a Mansfield offense that hadn’t scored fewer than 30 points all season to just 12 points.

Keller attributed executing a “great gap scheme” along with their “best tackling of the season” to the defensive performance.

Red River will need to match that effort against a Lakeside squad that’s scored at least 30 points in four of its six games.

Taron Riley and Kentravion Miller highlight a Lakeside offense that’s operated by capable quarterback Brock Case.

While Lakeside is off to its best start in school history in the first year under John Ware, the long-time North Webster coach, Red River will undoubtedly be Lakeside’s toughest test to date.

The six teams – five of them Class 1A opponents – that Lakeside has beaten have a combined 10 wins.

A young Red River offensive line has matured throughout the season and will attempt to create running room against a Lakeside defense that hasn’t allowed an opponent to score more than 22 points this season.

Lakeside currently sits at No. 6 in the Division III Non-Select power rankings while Red River is aiming to climb from its No. 22 spot into a first-round home playoff game (top 16).