Cedar Creek takes on old foe Ouachita Christian in Bayou Jamb

Cedar Creek is in for another tough preseason measuring stick against former district foe Ouachita Christian Friday in the Bayou Jamb.

And after a less-than-perfect scrimmage against Lakeside last week, the Cougars are eager for another chance to test themselves and smooth out their in-game operation in the premier football jamboree in the state.

“Get to play in a great atmosphere; challenge ourselves against one of the premier smallschool programs in the state,” Cedar Creek head coach William Parkerson said. “Hope to just keep making progress and get a lot better from last week to this week.

“Obviously, we didn’t play as well as we wanted last week and that falls on me. But everything was all correctable, fixable. But it was good for a lot of first-time guys to get out there and be able to get reps against another color jersey,” Parkerson said.

Creek and OCS won’t match up in the regular season like years past due to the Eagles moving up in classification from 1A to 2A this year – a non-factor in Parkerson’s view of the matchup.

He wants his team focused on themselves and fixing mistakes that defined a rough scrimmage with Lakeside, not the opponent on the other side.

But for those in need of a refresher, Creek’s district slate now includes Arcadia, Jonesboro Hodge, Lincoln Prep, Glenbrook, Haynesville, Plain Dealing, and Ringgold.

For OCS head coach Steven Fitzhugh, facing the Cougars’ offense is a worthwhile challenge for his team — even if the two squads are no longer regular-season rivals.

“With the exception of playing them last year, we’ve only seen it two other times,” Fitzhugh said Monday at Bayou Jamb Media Day. “It’s a tough offense that they have the discipline to continue to run it. A lot of teams don’t prepare for it on a weekly basis, and so you have to be really disciplined. It’ll be a great test for us this week.”

Parkerson brought seniors Landon Hall and James Myers to Bayou Jamb Media Day, with the veteran players representing the program’s values and desire to play with a physical edge.

For Myers, the Bayou Jamb always gets his competitive fire going.

“It’s an exciting event. It’s good for the fans, good for the community. Just trying to get ready as the season approaches,” Myers said Monday at Media Day.

Hall, doubling as Creek’s right tackle and as a starting defensive lineman, wants the team to show improvement in fundamentals against OCS.

He knows the Lakeside scrimmage wasn’t up to the program’s standards and believes the Cougars have more to show this weekend against a longtime foe.

“Effort is not a problem. It’s just making sure we get the little things right and then the big things will fall into place,” Hall said. “When it comes to effort, we win every time.”

Cedar Creek had a mixed bag in its scrimmage against Lakeside, with the defense struggling to contain the Warriors’ explosive running game but find-ing solid tackling nights from Blake Robinson, Myers, Mason Wooden, and others.

Offensively, freshman quarterback Cason Floyd and the offensive line couldn’t find rhythm on designed play calls and faced a handful of pre- snap penalties.

Floyd had opportunites for play- action passes downfield but couldn’t connect with his targets.

Cedar Creek will face OCS Friday at 4 p.m. at Malone Stadium in Monroe as part of the 2024 Bayou Jamb.