By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports

The Natchitoches Central High School football team has a lot of new faces, on the field and the sidelines, which means getting experience against outside competition is extremely valuable.

The Chiefs, led by new coach Brad Laird, had a productive scrimmage last Friday evening at Turpin Stadium, facing their first outside opponent, Pineville.

“It was good to get live reps against an opponent on film. We have just two starters back on both sides of the ball, so there were a lot of inexperienced guys getting a lot of game reps for the first time,” said Laird.

“As the game went along, I thought we did well as far as controlling the game, understanding the transition from offense to defense to special teams. But we have to play with consistent effort and minimize the mental mistakes, which are going to happen early,” he said.

Natchitoches Central had plenty of good moments offensively, but did not sustain possessions, said Laird.

“It was good to see some explosive plays offensively, some big-play touchdowns, but we didn’t have consistent drives downfield.”

Senior receiver/defensive back Dillon Braxton “showed his experience and talent. He had a big touchdown catch, a big third down catch, and was very physical at receiver on the outside blocking. He was one I thought stood out overall, offensively and defensively,” said Laird.

NCHS will play with a scoreboard for the first time Friday night at 8 in Monroe at the Bayou Jamb, squaring off against Ouachita.

The Chiefs will play on Sept. 6 at Breaux Bridge to officially open the season.

Journal photo by KEVIN SHANNAHAN