On what has historically been a bye week before region play begins, Vicksburg High’s football team will take on Natchez Friday night at Memorial Stadium.

The game was added last offseason, even though schedules are usually set two years at a time. The Gators had an open date last season, but Rogers said he wanted to play this week to continue building rhythm and depth. Rogers hopes Vicksburg and Natchez will develop a rivalry and the game continues for years to come. This will be their first meeting since 2006.

“About 80 percent of teams in the state have gone to this 12-game schedule,” Rogers said. “Last season we didn’t have a game during open week and they didn’t either. So I reached out to their athletic director and told them I was interested in getting this game in because of proximity and also just trying to get a rivalry with those guys too because it’s right up the highway.”

The Gators will wear all black uniforms Friday night, and Rogers encouraged the crowd to do the same.

Based on past results, Rogers had good reason to keep playing instead of taking the week off.

Last year the Gators went into their bye week 3-1, and Rogers said the team became lax. It lost two out of the next three games. He said playing this week will keep the team in its pattern and give an extra opportunity to those who have not adjusted to the pace of the season.

“Some guys are not in rhythm yet,” Rogers said, adding an extra game could get them moving in the right direction. “(We’re) trying to execute and get everything going before district.”

Rogers said scheduling a break in the middle of the season is overrated because players get breaks on the weekends and have lighter practices on Mondays and Thursdays. Typically, he said, a bye week practice is flat because the team has nothing immediate to visualize and it leads to idle time.

“Instead of that, we’ll be afforded the opportunity to play a game this week. (We need) guys still mentally focused because we have a goal,” Rogers said. “I want us to stay in rhythm, be a championship team and be battle tested.”

Natchez has proved to have a high power passing game this season, and Rogers said it does play to the Gators’ defensive strength, which is a talented secondary and ferocious pass rush.

Natchez quarterback Christopher Scott is averaging nearly 40 pass attempts per game, and threw three touchdown passes in a loss to Warren Central last week. Rogers said the Gators need to get to Scott early and often to get him out of rhythm and wear on him mentally.

“We want to take his mental capacity early,” Rogers said.

Last week against Yazoo City, the Gators rushed for 260 yards without leading rusher Marlon Hodge. Hodge sprained his knee two weeks ago against Warren Central and is expected to miss several more games.

Mike Sims finished the game with seven carries for 85 yards and scored twice, Tacarie Stewart had three carries for 59 yards, and Jeff Scott rushed three times for 60 yards. The Gators averaged 14.4 yards per carry as a team, and no player ran it more than seven times.

“We took some necessary strides this week and planned three running backs and also planned Jeff Scott as a wildcat quarterback,” Rogers said. “That’s something I wanted to save for district, but with us losing one of our running backs, I went ahead and broke that out.”

Rogers places a great deal of importance on having a solid running game to win. He is pleased with the team’s effort. Through four games last season, the Gators had 488 rushing yards and four touchdowns. This season, they have 709 yards and six touchdowns through the same span.

“I always say we got to get a running game. I believe we can pass with the best of them, but in order to be a complete team, you’ve got to be able to run the football and control the clock and control the game when it’s necessary,” Rogers said.

FRIDAY’S AREA GAMES

All games start at 7 p.m.

Trinity at Porters Chapel (Radio: 104.5 FM)

St. Al at Hartfield Academy (Radio: 101.3 FM)

Natchez at Vicksburg (Radio: 1490 AM)

Rebul Academy at Franklin Academy

Sharkey-Issaquena at Delta Streets

Humphreys Academy at Tallulah Academy

Wilkinson Christian at Central Hinds

McComb at Port Gibson

Opelousas at Madison Parish

Online: For live scoring updates on Friday, visit twitter.com/vixpostsports or facebook.com/thevicksburgpost