If a decade in the coaching ranks has taught Blake Purvis anything, it seems to be how to look between the lines of the box score, analyze film and find some positives.

It’s both a way to make his teams better or, after something like Porters Chapel Academy’s preseason jamboree last week against St. Aloysius, a way to cope.

PCA gave up six touchdowns, nearly 400 yards of offense, and one safety in only two quarters of football. In studying film, however, Purvis said he saw more opportunities that were left on the field than the one-sided beatdown that showed up on the scoreboard might indicate.

“If we do what we’re coached to do, we’ve got the guys who have responsibilities to stop what we were seeing,” Purvis said. “And offensively, looking at film, I thought the offensive line looked better than what I initially thought. We ran the football. We opened some holes. The running backs missed some running lanes a couple of times and we’d have a bust or getting our helmet to the wrong side here and there, and that stopped some runs from being really big plays, but were still productive runs.”

Purvis will make his official debut as PCA’s head coach Friday night, when the Eagles host St. Andrew’s at 7 p.m. in the 2016 season opener.

It’s a homecoming months in the making for the PCA alum, Class of 2006, and one he’s excited for — once all of the prep work is done, of course.

“I’m more focused on everything else right now and trying to get us there,” Purvis said. “When game time gets here, I’m sure it’ll really set in Friday morning, Friday lunchtime, maybe Thursday night after we wrap up practice and there’s nothing left but the game. Right now, there’s a lot of focus trying to take care of this one step at a time first before we focus on Friday.”

St. Andrew’s is an MHSAA Class 3A team that beat Porters Chapel 35-0 for one of its six wins in 2015. The Saints, like PCA, appear to be in rebuilding mode. There are only six seniors on the roster — PCA has three — and a big junior class. Last season’s 6-5 finish was the first winning season for St. Andrew’s since 2008.

It’s a game Purvis feels the Eagles can compete in and even win, provided they clean up the small mistakes that proved so costly in the jamboree.

“They’ve got some size. They’ve got a really good quarterback that can throw the ball around a little bit. But I think it’s a matchup that we can have success with if our guys will tune in. We’ve got to prepare. We’ve got to play a flawless game, because they’re not going to beat themselves.”

FRIDAY’S AREA FOOTBALL GAMES

All games start at 7 p.m. unless noted

• Warren Central vs. Oak Grove, at Vicksburg, 6 p.m. (Radio: 105.5 FM)

• St. Andrew’s at Porters Chapel (Radio: 104.5 FM)

• Cathedral at St. Aloysius (Radio: 101.3 FM)

• North Sunflower at Tallulah Academy

• Hebron Christian at Sharkey-Issaquena

• Rebul Academy at Calvary Christian

• Amite County at Port Gibson

• Union Christian at Central Hinds

• Wayne County at Vicksburg, 8:30 p.m.(Radio: 1490 AM)