Rocky Bayou optimistic about season (with VIDEO, PHOTOS)

By ADAM PRUIETT

adamp@nwfdailynews.com

NICEVILLE - Rocky Bayou Christian football coach John Reaves was watching the movie "Remember the Titans" recently when his wife started chuckling.

It came during a scene after a star defensive player was paralyzed in a car wreck leading into the big game. The head coach, played by Denzel Washington, was told by an assistant that everything's not always about winning and losing.

"I'm a winner. I'm going to win," he replied.

It was then that Reaves' wife, sitting nearby at the computer, started laughing. The line in itself wasn't funny. It was the ring of familiarity that was comical.

"It sounded like something that would come out of my mouth," Reaves said. "I'm not going to make any predictions, but we're going to put it all out there."

Indeed, anybody who thinks that Rocky Bayou is anticipating one big growing pain of a first season would be wrong. The Knights realistically can't expect to be in every game, but they will view the majority of their schedule with optimism.

"We just want to be competitive this first year," Reaves said. "If we can be competitive out there, then good things will happen and God will take care of the rest."

Only a couple players on Rocky Bayou have high school football experience. Many of the rest were entirely new to the game when they joined the first team in school history.

At the beginning of camp, that was only too apparent.

"Embarrassing when you compared us to other football teams," senior tight end/defensive end Taylor Peacock said. "We didn't look like a football team at all because none of us had ever played before."

Reaves and his staff had to start by teaching the Knights elementary football stuff like how to properly line up in a three-point stance. But things have quickly progressed and while the Knights won't overwhelm anybody with their athleticism, they make up for it in brainpower.

"The asset of intelligence can't be overlooked," Reaves said. "You've got to have great athletes to win but, if you have great athletes who are intelligent, it gives you an edge. And, if you have adequate athletes who are intelligent, it makes up for some of the shortfalls of just being adequate."

Rocky Bayou had a strong turnout to get the program started, with around 40 players coming out for the team. There are more underclassmen than upperclassmen but, when you're building a program, that's not a bad thing.

"We're a lot better than we were," Peacock said. "We're coming together now as a team I think."

PHOTOS: Click to view more photos