By BY BRUCE HIXON – sports editor
If the state's preseason rankings hold true to form, it will not take long for the W.S. Neal Blue Eagles to find out where they stand.
W.S. Neal will get a good preseason test Thursday when it visits the Andalusia Bulldogs. Game time is 7 p.m.
Andalusia was ranked ninth in the state in the Class 4A preseason poll. Part of that ranking comes from the Bulldogs 7-4 record from a year ago, 5-2 in the former Class 4A Region 1. The Bulldogs qualified for the state playoffs, but lost in overtime to Geneva in the opening round. Perhaps an even bigger part of that ranking comes from the fact Andalusia returns most of its offensive and defensive lineup from that squad.
Blaine Hathcock said.
The Bulldogs averaged 32.8 point a game last season. Quarterback Matt Mellown (6-2, 202 lb. sr.) is in his third season of directing that offense. One of his favorite targets during that time has been wide receiver DeAndre Wright (5-10,1 80 lb. sr.).
The Bulldogs had a punishing running game last season last year. Two of those main cogs are back with Michael Berry (6-2, 195 lb. jr.) and Ledarrius McNeil (6-1, 198 lb. sr.).
While a victory would be nice, Hathcock said that is not the top priority this week.
Hathcock admits he and his staff have not spent a lot of time preparing for Andalusia yet.
The W.S. Neal skipper has mixed feelings towards playing preseason games.