But if he had it to do again, Friendswood head coach Robert Koopmann probably wouldn’t change much in the crucial District 10-5A triumph which left his team unbeaten through six games.
If Friendswood had to scale a towering peak last Friday, the Mustangs face the whole mountain range this week at Freedom Field in Rosharon.
Shadow Creek, a 2018 Class 5A state finalist and the current No. 2 ranked team in the state, seems to have no chinks in its armor.
“I don’t want to see the No. 1 team in the state, Lone Star Frisco, after having seen Shadow Creek on film,” Koopmann said. “What you notice immediately is that they’re fast everywhere, especially on defense.
“They’ve given up less than 700 yards in six games. It looks like they give you space, so you throw the ball in space. All of a sudden, that space disappears.
“Offensively, they’ve got weapons everywhere. They very much deserve their No. 2 ranking. It’s just a really good football team.”
Friendswood vs. Shadow Creek
When: 7 p.m., Friday
Where: Freedom Field
Records: Friendswood 6-0, 3-0; Shadow Creek 5-0, 2-0
Friendswood is doing its best to state its case as a contender for the District 10-5A crown, although most preseason prognostications had the Mustangs finishing no higher than fourth.
Last week, Mustang quarterback Luke Grden completed 19 of 32 passes for 262 yards and four touchdowns, but Friendswood still had to dodge a last-second bullet when a Foster missed what would have been a game-winning field goal with 32 seconds left.
The game was a breakout performance for the Mustang offense, which came up against its first high-quality test. The Friendswood defense, too, experienced its most stern encounter against the explosive Falcon offense.
Little changes this Friday except that the challenge may be taken to a greater level against the 5-0 Sharks.
Obviously, Koopmann’s squad has to find a way to be successful on both sides of the ball.
“First of all, we have to play with the same type emotion we did last Friday night,” he said. “I was really proud of our level of commitment from everyone last week.
“From kids that played 60 snaps to kids that didn’t play any, it was incredible. We told them last week, for the next three weeks, we need that.”
Staying mentally focused for that long is grind which most teams can’t manage.
“Ask any coach…you can’t be up 10 weeks in a row,” Koopmann said. “That’s human nature. But right now our kids believe they can beat anybody, and that’s half the battle.
“They’ve gotten more confident in each other. Defensively, we’ve been pretty stout all year, but that’s where we had the majority of our experience.
“The main thing that’s carrying us is that these kids are just having a great time playing high school football.
“When you have a group of kids who love being around each other and the coaches like being around the kids, then they’ll play hard.”
Shadow Creek hasn’t played a close game this season. Last week, the Sharks defeated Galveston Ball, 49-6. The previous week, Shadow Creek had a severe first-quarter lull, but still managed a 34-0 win over Texas City.
Other Shark victories have come against Summer Creek (64-14), Alief Elsik (63-7) and Angleton (42-14).
Friendswood’s approach against the Sharks probably won’t vary much from its game-plan against Foster.
“I’m sure we’ll throw it just about every down,” Koopmann said. “When you throw it 55 times a game, you’ll give up some sacks.
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