Everything the Columbia Academy Cougars want to accomplish this season remains within their grasp during the last two weeks of the regular season, and their road to the postseason begins Friday night at Wayne Academy for their second District 4 matchup of the season.
The Cougars (2-6, 0-1) are on the bubble of the postseason picture but will need to win at least one, if not both, of their remaining games to secure a spot in the playoffs. Standing in their way this week are the 2-4 Jaguars, who are coming off a 45-13 road loss to Winston Academy.
CA head coach TC Chambliss said the Cougars are well aware of the importance of Friday night and will definitely be prepared for a four-quarter fight.
“It’s huge. Every game that is the next game up is huge, but I told our guys that this is the first one I’ve really just felt is absolutely must-win that I’ve had in my career,” he said. “I don’t believe in feeling pressure unless you’re not prepared, but I definitely feel there is an extra sense of urgency to be prepared for this game.”
Wayne Academy’s season to this point has been very similar to CA’s. The Jaguars have struggled to keep up with schools from bigger classifications while holding their own against schools their size.
“Wayne Academy has a big squad over there with a lot of big, country guys that play hard. They’re electric,” Chambliss said. “They have coach Johnny Ainsworth over there calling plays, and I’ve had some battles with him when I was with coach (Larry) Dolan at Forrest County AHS. You add that experience to the group of kids they’ve got over there, and it’s going to be a fight.
“It’s do-or-die basically. It’s like a playoff game for us. If we don’t win out, there’s basically no shot at the playoffs.”
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
