Three weeks into the football season, Vicksburg High will finally have its home opener against Yazoo City. It opened the season at Viking Stadium for the Red Carpet Bowl, traveled to Terry and returned to Viking Stadium for the River City Classic.

Gators coach Marcus Rogers looks forward to walking out of their fieldhouse onto their own territory.

“There’s nothing like being at home,” Rogers said. “We’re just looking forward to getting the home crowd out, have our game day experience and environment, and invite the community out.”

The Gators go into Friday’s game healthy and expect the return of Devontay Knight in about two weeks. The starting safety injured his elbow during the preseason jamboree and has not played since.

Their mentality is to get another win on the record and finish the season on an eight-game winning streak, but they’re taking things slow.

Rogers hasn’t seen any real film on Yazoo City other than clips found on the Internet, so the Gators are essentially going into the game blind. He went through a similar experience against Harrison Central, which had a new coach and didn’t play a spring game or any jamborees.

However, from what he has seen, Rogers said quarterback Kory Price likes to make plays with his feet, but overall the Indians are smaller than the Class 6A teams Vicksburg has played this season.

“We’ve seen the biggest of the big. Harrison Central’s offensive line averaged around 288 pounds, Terry was right at 290 pounds, Warren Central right at 280. It’s going to be a relief this week to not get those guys pounding on us for four quarters,” Rogers said.

The Gators will get a feel for the Indians in the first two drives and adjust on the fly as they become aware of their formations and plays.

“Offense dictates what defense is going to do, formation-wise, anyway,” Rogers said.

Rogers wants the tempo to be fast, wants to run the ball and score a lot of points. He’s challenged the defense to post a shutout.

Running back Tim Jackson has been praised by Rogers, but the coach will try to spread the running wealth around Friday. He said the crowd will see some untraditional things against Yazoo City,

“Just trying to look for another explosive kid. You may see some kids out there that haven’t run the ball all year. We’re going to put out our biggest offensive line we’ve ever put out,” Rogers said.

Aside from being the home opener Friday, longtime assistant coach Bobby Huell will have the press box at Memorial Stadium dedicated in his honor. Huell passed away July 20 after a fight with cancer. A Vicksburg native, Huell coached the Gators for 25 years.

His passing was a blow for the team and Rogers. Huell took Rogers under his wing and made him feel welcome.

“He is the Gators,” Rogers said. “Coach was around a long time. When I first got here, he showed me all the ropes, introduced me to his family and told me all about the odds-and-ends of Vicksburg. He was a great guy.”

Rogers said the dedication will be emotional for his players, the parents and the community.

“It’s something we need to do to show respect out of the service and love for coach Huell. It’s got to be done,” Rogers said.