By Brian Besch
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The regular season is here, and the Livingston Lions begin 2024 on the road at Sugar Land’s Mercer Stadium Saturday night.
Two games were scheduled in this slot before Livingston was forced into a game with a Class 6A school. Both Navasota and Houston Worthing scheduled with Livingston, then backed out of the match after new athletic directors were hired at each of those schools.
Livingston athletic director Finis Vanover said it took nine days to find another opponent after Worthing, and was left with a choice of Fort Bend Austin or Jefferson High School near Shreveport. Austin has an enrollment of 2,564, while Livingston counted 1,157 in the most recent UIL numbers.
“They are a spread football team, and they are going to throw it 40 out of 50 plays,” Vanover said of the Bulldogs. “They have nice receivers and a quarterback. It is nothing that is awe-inspiring, but they do a good job with it. They are into the 7-on-7 philosophy like everybody in that area.
“Defensively, they are just like what we have seen the last two weeks. It can be just like scrimmaging ourselves, with four defensive linemen and two or three inside linebackers, based on formation. If you spread anybody out, another linebacker leaves, so it is either a 4-3 or 4-2, based on how many defensive backs in coverage they need.”
The biggest difference between the two teams will be the number of players on each sideline. Vanover said the ability to rest and recover will be paramount, especially in a season opener.
“That is all we have been working on the last two weeks,” Vanover said. “We are going to do some good things, but they are going to be based on providing rest to a different section. We will call certain fronts (on defense) or certain plays on offense to give some guys a rest every once in a while.”
Many of the Lions play both offense and defense, so Livingston’s depth will be tested.
The coach said there isn’t much of a size difference, and could even skew toward Livingston. The Bulldogs will have a few tall receivers, but should compare to a district opponent.
“I think physically we match up very well, as long as we don’t get our legs run out from under us. They have some quick kids and some skill kids, but we saw them scrimmaging against Bryan. Bryan broke loose and ran away from them four or five times. If they start running the ball out of the spread with their big back, or doing something out of the ordinary, we have to figure out a way to rest those big guys on the next offensive series. It will be a chess game of play calling and defensive front attack. We don’t have as many backups as they do, that is the only real difference.”
The Lion passing game is still a concern going into the season. The offense did not get as many repetitions passing in a game situation as the coaching staff wanted.
“We wanted to see some formations and we wanted to see some specific people. We did a great job with the receivers blocking for those long-distance runs that we made. All of our backs broke because our receivers were running good routes. We have to do a better job of getting the ball to them to keep the defense off of us up front. If we don’t, we will look up and they will all play eight-man fronts on us, sit back three deep, and not worry about it.
“We have to stop the long, explosive plays by their offense and create some of our own, which we are pretty good at. If we can make three or four explosive plays offensively each half, I think we are going to be in great shape coming down to the end of the clock.”
The ability to move the ball on offense consistently, picking up first downs and running clock will be another key to the game. Limiting Austin’s offensive plays will improve the fatigue factor on a hot August day.
The Saturday game will give Livingston an extra day to make final cuts to a 44-man roster and prepare for the first opponent. The coaching staff is making decisions on the final four or five players that will travel with the varsity this week.
“I think the majority of our kids have been there and done that. They understand their shortcomings and know what they do best.
They know that we are going to put them in a position to do as good as they can. About two-thirds of the roster has been exposed to that. If those young ones follow suit and come through, I think we are going to be very pleased with the outcome.
“In 6A, the biggest difference is the number of the band, students, and drill team performers. They play 11 just like we do. Now, their second and third teams is where they gain the advantage on us, because that’s where the numbers start catching up with us. We’ve got to prepare for a lower set of numbers than these guys. It is a perfect learning curve and preparation game for us. It is what non-district is supposed to be about.”
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