By Robert Hudson

The Selma Times-Journal

After opening the season with two road losses the Ellwood Christian Academy Eagles football team (0-2, 0-1) is hoping Friday night’s home opener will give them a boost.

The Eagles will play their first home game of the season Friday night at Memorial Stadium at 7 p.m. when they face the South Montgomery County Academy Raiders in region play.

Ellwood head football coach Mike Stokes said he hopes the return home will help the Eagles rebound from last week’s 47-6 loss against Lowndes Academy.

“I really think playing at home is going to help us,” Stokes said. “We’re just telling them (the players) to go out, play hard and defend their turf. Just do the little things we have to and try to win a ball game.”

Stokes said the Raiders are a good team that utilizes the spread offense.

“They’re good offensively and defensively,” Stokes said. “So, we’ve got our hands full again this week.”

Stokes said the Eagles have to improve their play in the trenches and the secondary in order to win this week.

“Our offensive line has got to get better for us,” Stokes said. “We’ve got to make the correct blocks. We have a young secondary. They’ve got to get better for us also.”

Stokes said it’s important that his team wins in region play.

“We need to be 1-1 in the region instead of 0-2,” Stokes said. “I think that’ll give our kids a little confidence. It would be tremendous for the team to win a region game.”

Stokes said his team would also need to be disciplined in order to win.

“We’ve got to be disciplined. Our team can’t keep trying to do things their way,” Stokes said. “They’ve got to do things the way we’ve coached them to do it. For the first two halves of the first two games, they’ve played poorly, but when they come out in the second half and do what we ask them to do, it’s a totally different game for us.”