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Laurel Pfahler
Special to Rivals High

Ensworth, a third-year Division II program, opens the season Thursday at home against 2008 Class 5A champion Murfreesboro (Tenn.) Oakland High.

Both teams had trouble finding opponents eager to play them after successful seasons last year and are considered among the top programs in Tennessee. The Tigers finished 11-1 in a breakout second season and are ranked No. 83 in the preseason RivalsHigh 100, but they face a much more experienced Oakland team (No. 72) that is coming off a 14-1 season.

"I always like playing really solid competition, but when you have a team as youthful as ours, you get up there and lose your confidence and you can get yourself killed," Bowers said with a laugh. "This is a really talented team. It's too much of a test for us, but it was either that or no game, so we took it."

The game will be televised on Comcast Sports Southeast and provides the up-and-coming Tigers an opportunity to prove themselves against an Oakland team that is considered a favorite to win the Class 6A title this year. Oakland returns seven starters on offense and defense.

"Over time this game is not meaningful, but in the short run, what a great opportunity it is for us to kind of get on the national map," Bowers said. "We don't deserve to be on the national map yet, but if we beat them, I'd say we definitely deserve to be there because that's a good team."

Patriots coach Thomas McDaniel might say Bowers is being modest, though. While Ensworth is a younger, smaller program, McDaniel sees it as a good challenge to start the season.

"We are excited about playing someone as respected as Ensworth," McDaniel said. "We will have to play fairly mistake-free football because Ensworth is not going to make a lot of mistakes. It's going to come down to a couple possessions, and a few plays in the game will probably determine the outcome."

Bowers is confident his team will be solid by the end of the season, but he just isn't sure the Tigers are quite ready to compete at such a high level with five players coming back from anterior cruciate ligament injuries suffered last season and with some holes still needing to be filled.

The defense should remain solid with seven returning starters, but the offense is a question because of inexperience, especially at the line of scrimmage, where just three starters return, including tight ends Sam Cooper - who committed to Clemson this summer - and Daniel McFadden.

Ensworth boasts a Football Bowl Subdivision prospect at tailback in Orleans Darkwa, who rushed for 1,952 yards and 21 touchdowns on 215 carries last year. But with an almost entirely new offensive line, Bowers is uncertain how successful his star offensive player will be in the beginning of the season.

"Orleans can run hard, and he is going to do the best he can, but we have to become a cohesive unit offensively for him to be successful," Bowers said. "We are not that yet, but I expect he will have a great season. In the short run, he may struggle a bit, so we might have to find other ways of getting him the ball in space."

The offensive line is especially a concern against Oakland, which features one of the best defensive lines in the state, led by two-way tackle Tim McAdoo (6 feet 2/310 pounds), who verbally committed to Kentucky on Monday. McAdoo had 85 tackles last year, including 18 for losses, and forced four fumbles.

"Our defense starts with our defensive line," McDaniel said. "We feel like that's the strength of our team. We've got three returning defensive lineman and the fourth one was a starter on offense last year and easily could have started on defense last year."

Oakland gave up just 8.5 points per game in 2008 and limited opponents to 88.9 yards a game on the ground.

If the Patriots have a weakness on defense, McDaniel said it's in the secondary, though it features FBS recruit Zach Barnes at safety. Barnes, who had three interceptions last year, is making the switch from cornerback, and the rest of the secondary is fairly inexperienced.

The Tigers may take advantage of that "weakness," as they look to become more pass-oriented this season with the return of quarterback Cody Tollison, who tore his ACL in the first week of practice last year.

"He has a strong arm, and he has a good sense of where to get the ball; he has a good sense of timing," Bowers said. "Last year we were more of an option team. We had an athlete there, and we threw the ball rarely. This time we will have more of a balance."

Oakland should be more productive with its passing game this year, as well, with the further development of junior Christian Adams, who replaced Matthew Schaller at quarterback during the 2008 season. Schaller is now a split end and combines with Buddy Mitchell as two of Adams' main targets.

"In our scrimmages we put up a lot of points, and I think a lot of that has to do with the fact we were able to spread the field vertically," McDaniel said. "Last year, we were a grind-it-out, smash-mouth football team. This year, we feel we have big-play potential because we can throw the ball, so we are excited about what Christian can do for us. I expect us to be more multiple this year."

McDaniel, however, said the Patriots will continue to rely mainly on their running game with an entirely new backfield. Oakland lost its top three running backs - Precious Valentine, Sam Bass and B.J. Nelson - to graduation, and junior fullback Dre Frasier, who was looking for a breakout season, tore his ACL in the second scrimmage this preseason.

Juniors Khalil Newman and Tee Mayberry, who played safety last year, take over at tailback and likely will see most of the carries.

"Losing Dre Frasier, we don't think we will be as strong running the ball at fullback, but our tailback position, we still feel is very deep," McDaniel said. "What we lost last year, we feel like we've got a good group of backs coming in to replace them."

Despite his confidence in the offense, McDaniel doesn't expect a high-scoring game against Ensworth.

"I think they have potential to score a lot of points, and we scored a lot of points in our scrimmages, but they've got a good defense and we've got a good defense, so I think it's going to come down to the lines on both sides of the ball," McDaniel said.

Game of the Week: No. 72 Oakland Patriots vs No. 83 Ensworth Tigers
KEY TO THE GAME: Oakland Patriots
Oakland	The Patriots have to use their dominating defensive line to shut the Tigers down. Ensworth has a talented running back in Orleans Darkwa, but his offensive line is inexperienced and few teams have been able to block Patriots defensive tackle Tim McAdoo.
KEY TO THE GAME: Ensworth Tigers
Ensworth	Ensworth must show improvement in its run defense and cannot give up the big plays that cost the Tigers last year because Oakland has shown the ability this preseason to put up a lot of points. With the Patriots' defense expected to be even more dominating that last year, the Tigers have to do what they can to keep this a low-scoring game.
Note: Kicking Concerns
Ensworth lost its punter, field goal kicker and kickoff specialist to ACL injuries last year and did not even practice extra points until this week. Coach Ricky Bowers said that is a main focus this week and the biggest area of concern heading into the season.
RivalsHigh Prediction
With a lot of rain in the forecast what little passing was expected may become non-existent. Two power running teams will hit head on to open the season. Points will be a at premium in this one as it they first week of the season, and two very balanced teams. The experience factor is on the side of Oakland but it will be tough to get over on Ricky Bowers and Ensworth at home. Ensworth 20, Oakland 12.