By By SCOTT COOPER – Sports Writer
After two disappointing losses to begin the season, the W.S. Neal Blue Eagles look as though they are starting to play to their potential.
Convincing victories over Elba and Central-Hayneville the past two weeks have evened the Blue Eagles' record to 2-2 and placed them in the thick of the Region 1 title race with a 2-1 mark.
In Friday night's 56-0 win over Central, Neal scored on its first five possessions and built a 36-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. In addition, the Blue Eagles' defense completely shut down all efforts of the Central offense that finished with -5 total yards for the game.
According to Neal head coach Jim Fountain, one of the positives of last week's comfortable win was the opportunity to give some non-starters plenty of game experience.
Friday night's win came on the heels of an important regional victory the previous week against Elba. In the 28-14 win over Elba, who entered the game unbeaten, the Blue Eagles showed the talent and physical dominance many expected from them entering the season.
Fountain said two areas of his team, passing and defense, appear to be improving and will be very important as the season wears on.
The Blue Eagles get an opportunity to stretch their winning streak to three straight this week when they host the Escambia County Blue Devils. The Devils are 1-3 on the season after a win last week against Booker T. Washington High School.
Fountain said the non-regional matchup with the Class 5A Blue Devils would almost certainly be a hard-hitting affair.
Game time is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Friday at W.S. Neal Stadium.