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The South Coffeyville Lions are turning their focus toward district play this week after a tough non-district stretch that included a 46-0 loss to Copan. Head coach Rich Giesen said his team showed promise early in that game, holding Copan to just an 8-0 lead midway through the second quarter. However, offensive miscues proved costly, with bad snaps and turnovers leading directly to four scores for the Hornets. It’s hard to win a game when you do that, Giesen admitted, while also praising his defense for holding strong early.

Despite the setback, the Lions are resetting their sights on the bigger picture: competing for a district title. Giesen emphasized the importance of cleaning up offensive execution, particularly in the red zone where the Lions have struggled to finish drives. We’ve moved the ball well, but we haven’t scored when we’ve had opportunities, he said. The first-year coach acknowledged that building confidence in a team with little recent success has been a challenge, but he believes progress is being made.

That progress will be put to the test Friday night when South Coffeyville hosts Watts in the Lions’ first district game of the season. Watts enters 0-2 but has defeated the Lions in each of the past four seasons and made the playoffs a year ago. Giesen described Watts as a physical, run-heavy team with an aggressive defense, and stressed the importance of his offense establishing itself early. “They’ll come in excited, but we’ve got to stop their run game and put together long drives,” he said. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in South Coffeyville, where the Lions will look to start district play 1-0.