Trinity looks to surpass their win total from last season when they travel to Richardton-Taylor-Hebron on Friday night.
The Titans (3-1, 2-1 in Region 4) are coming off a Saturday game where they beat New Salem-Almont-Glen Ullin, but the short week isn’t something that has impacted them head coach John Odermann said.
“It (has been) a regular week of practice. The harder weeks are when you have a Thursday game, because you have to constrict your preparation and hit the ground running on Monday,” he said. “Going from a Saturday game to a Friday game really isn't too bad.”
Quarterback Jake Daniel tweaked his knee two weeks ago in a loss to Bowman County, and sat out last Saturday, but he is ready to rock and roll this week.
As for the Raiders they are 0-4 overall and 0-2 in the region with a forfeited game two weeks ago against Shiloh Christian.
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Quarterback Zayden Schmalenberger is back as a senior, and Odermann said that Richardton-Taylor-Hebron has several athletic kids out wide for him to throw to.
“They have some athletic kids that can move around and they try to get them into space to make plays. They do a good job getting the ball into their playmakers hands,” he said. “They have some kids that can punish you with yards after the catch. We have to make sure we tackle well and that we are doing our job on defense.”
Despite having athletes, the Raiders do not have much depth, and through three games they have scored only a total of six points.
On offense, Odermann hopes that Trinity can put together a complete game at last.
In the first four games they have had spurts where they have looked really good, but there have been times where they have shot themselves in the foot too.
Despite not playing their best at all times, Odermann is confident in his group entering Friday night due to their mental toughness and the way that they have grinded.
“I don't know if I look at our record as much, but I look at the teams that we have been able to be competitive with and beat. That is the bigger confidence booster. We have competed with and beat three and of four really solid and quality opponents…,” he said. “We are willing to grind and play to the last whistle and we have had to do that all four games. I think that is the thing that lifts confidence and spirits. We didn’t come through the first four games unscaved, but we were two points away from having a 4-0 record.”
