This interview was recorded at the Athens ISD Fieldhouse on Wednesday, Aug. 31, with Coach Zac Harrell and Michael V. Hannigan. Listen to the complete interview above.
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By Michael V. Hannigan
The Athens Hornets will look to improve on their 1-0 record this Friday night when they travel to Waxahachie to take on Life High School.
The Life Waxahachie Mustangs are 0-0 on the year after their opener was canceled.
The Hornets beat the Mustangs last year, 40-7.
Athens is coming off a 34-27 win over Brownsboro last week that saw the Hornets hold on in the second half with a strong effort from the defense.
"It's a big rivalry game, so we feel really good that we came out of there with a win," said Coach Zac Harrell.
Against Brownsboro, the Hornet defense was a terror against the run.
"(The defense) did a great job of shutting down the run," said Coach Harrell. "In the first half they tried to run it a little bit and we stuffed the run pretty good."
That ability to stop the run will be tested this week against a Life Waxahachie team that runs the ball 75 percent of the time.
"We have to get 11 hats to the running back," said Coach Harrell, "because he is a legit running back. Big kid, runs hard, runs downhill, and has good speed. So it will be a good challenge."
Defensively, they run a 3-4 like Athens and Brownsboro.
"There are some similarities so our offensive line should have a good idea what we're going to face," Coach Harrell said.
This week's keys, according to Coach Harrell, are stopping the run on defense and protecting the ball on offense.
"We feel like we have an elite-level offense," he said, "and we feel like teams will have a hard time stopping us if we don't help them."
Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 Friday at Mustang Stadium in Waxahachie.
Topics in the podcast include:
* The win over Brownsboro (0:43)
* Trouble with penalties (1:31)
* Defense against Brownsboro (3:20)
* Life Waxahachie (5:30)
* Mustang offense (6:15)
* Mustang Defense (7:00)
* Injury to Gage Friedrich (7:50)
* Keys to the game (9:35)
These posts are free thanks to Hannigan Media sponsors Athens Screen Printing, Tinsley Law & Title, Gibson Pharmacy, R&R Lawn Specialist, Gilbert Electric, Hunan Buffet, and Holt Wrecker.
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