Strengths and weaknesses revealed during scrimmages

Iwas privileged to see four of Union County's football teams scrimmage this week. Here are a few thoughts on the various teams and games.

JUNCTION CITY

Under coach David Carpenter, the Junction City Dragons typically look the same each season.

They're going to be physical, disciplined, play at a fast pace, and carry themselves with a swagger.

Junction City once again utilized those attributes during a hotly-contested scrimmage against a good Harmony Grove team.

Defensively, Junction City showed that it is going to swarm the ball. The Dragon defense will definitely be ready for their week one game at Bearden. But offense is an area where there are a few momentary question marks.

Carpenter expanded the scheme this season. So it may take time for everything to jell.

But when everyone fully adapts to their increased duties – the Dragon offense will be prolific. Junction City has explosive skill-position players. Most of all, against Harmony Grove, the offensive line showed that it's capable of handling good competition.

Expect the Dragons to be among the few 3A teams competing in late November.

PARKERS CHAPEL

Parkers Chapel battled Smackover to a 6-6 tie during its scrimmage.

The Trojans' performance surpassed the expectations of many people, myself included.

Once again this season, due to the presence of running back Dezmon Jackson, the Trojans are an interesting team.

I was standing on the PC sideline when he breezed past everyone en route to an impressive 61-yard TD. Jackson is big, fast and difficult for any defense to contain.

Coach James Housdan dressed over 20 players for the scrimmage against Smackover.

Most of those individuals gave a great effort. Throughout the event, the Trojans' confidence steadily increased.

And Jackson, a senior, is a bona fide game-changer. For good reason, Jackson's cohorts believe in his abilities.

Therefore, the Trojan offense should revolve around Jackson.

The Trojans have the ability to exceed last season's win total of three, especially if Jackson's talents are properly utilized.

SMACKOVER

The Buckaroos' outing against Parkers Chapel was a major disappointment. Smackover looked nothing like a team expecting to have a stellar season.

Part of that was related to Parkers Chapel competing with great effort.

However, Smackover is much better than the disinterested performance it had against the Trojans.

Justifiably, Strickland was livid following the scrimmage. If Smackover plays that way against Harmony Grove in the season opener, the Bucks will lose – badly.

Nonetheless, I believe Smackover just had a bad day against Parkers Chapel.

The Bucks will enjoy a lot of success this season.

STRONG

The Strong Bulldogs had an encouraging 32-27 win over Lafayette County.

The Bulldogs, coached by Greg Anthony, were bolstered by several impressive runs against Lafayette County.

Strong's combination of a nice sized line, and speedy backs will put it in position to strike quickly.

The Bulldogs' bread-and-butter offensively is going to be a highly productive run-game.

Meanwhile, on defense, Strong has some issues it must quickly address.

Strong's pass coverage and pursuit to the ball – most notably the angles that were taken – was exposed against the Cougars.

Anthony seized control of the Bulldogs, just a few weeks before fall camp began. And for Strong to come away with a win over an uber-athletic Lafayette County team is a great start to Anthony's regime.

But in regard to the regular season, as always, the key for Strong is how it's able to handle adversity.

Where the Bulldogs finish in the 8-2A standings will be determined by their approach to adverse situations – when they arise.

(Kev Moyé is a sports writer for the El Dorado NewsTimes. He can be contacted via e-mail at kevmoye@ yahoo.com)