(File Photo Above from the 2015 Season)
By Mike Moore
Staff Writer
Jackson — The struggles of the past few years have been noted. For the East Jackson football program, it’s been a battle with numbers, injuries, forfeits and an abundance of losses on the gridiron.
As Thursday’s home date approaches, though, coach Tra Coolbaugh sees a monumental opportunity starring his guys in the face.
“This is a winnable game, and our guys know that,” Coolbaugh said. “To go out and actually find a way to do that would be huge, especially this early in the season.”
The Trojans went 1-8 a year ago, earning a win in the final week of the season.
Whether or not momentum carried over, or a youthful team has started to mature, Coolbaugh had very little to complain about after Week 1.
His guys battled to the end in what was an eventual 12-6 loss against Whitmore Lake.
“We drove right down the field with two minutes remaining,” Coolbaugh said. “And then we fumbled around the 15-yard line. That was tough. It was a game we had a chance to win.”
Asked if there was anything positive to take from it, despite the end result, Coolbaugh was adamant in his response.
“A lot. A lot to build from,” he said. “You never want to lose, but we were very happy with the performance. Now the goal is to get better, to make progress every week.”
That chance comes at home Thursday night against a rebuilding Vandercook Lake team.
Vandy rolled past East Jackson 41-0 a year ago, but the Jayhawks rolled past just about everyone in 2015.
With a reshuffling of the roster, the guys in red and white got much younger and graduated a ton of experience.
In Week 1, Vandercook fell to Springport 40-7.
Coolbaugh, of course, doesn’t want his words taken out of context when he says Thursday is a winnable game, but the reality of the situation of both programs essentially makes this one a coin flip.
“We made some adjustments at halftime last week, and it really paid off,” Coolbaugh said. “We want to continue that here this week. There’s some small things we need to correct, and if we do, we feel we have a great chance.”
He laughed when asked about the confidence of his guys right now.
“They are fired up and ready,” Coolbaugh said. “They’re like caged animals. They can’t wait to play. They want to pick up where we left off last week and get after it.”
Mike Moore is a play-by-play commentator and Sports Writer for JTV Sports. You can reach him at mjm12@albion.edu. He’s also the author of ‘Love, Defined; A Dedication to the Love, Sacrifice, and Magic of Motherhood.’
Love, Defined is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Tate Publishing or by contacting Mike directly.
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