Head Coach Antonio King said his Jordan High Falcons need to concentrate on playing the team on the opposite side of the ball in tonight’s matchup with the Vance County Vipers and not “shoot themselves in the foot” like they did last week in a loss to Southern Durham.
King told WIZS’s Scout Hughes and George Hoyle that his team, now 1-1, had five turnovers and allowed a TD off a kickoff return in the loss last week.
The Vipers also lost a heartbreaker in OT last week and are looking for their first win of the 2026 season.
Coach King said this week’s heat has kept them inside for practices, but the team was able to gt outside for a late practice yesterday.
There will be tents on both sidelines for tonight’s game, which kicks off at 7 p.m. in Durham. King said the field will be in full shade by 7:30 p.m. or so, which will help conditions on the field – and in the stands – a tad.
A good mix of upperclassmen will help this year’s team find their way to getting the job done on the field. “This team has to earn their own record,” he said.
Vipers Head Coach Aaron Elliott will bring a team that will “fight all the way to the end – they’ve got some young weapons,” King said, adding that his team must make sure they know where those players are on the field at all times.
The Falcons are healthy and there are no major injuries, thank goodness, King said. Cramping up as a result of the heat is his biggest concern. The players have water bottles with them through the day at school, and King said they check on the players regularly to make sure they’re staying as hydrated as possible.
King said he feels confident that if his Falcons can go out and execute their game plan against the Vipers and avoid costly turnovers and kickoff returns for touchdowns, they’ll be in good shape.
“We’ve just to go out and do our game plan,” he said. “Making sure we control our controllables.”
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