Porter’s Chapel Academy had a memorable season in 2023. For the past eight months, however, it has tried to turn it into just that — a memory.

The Eagles will officially turn the page to 2024 on Friday night when they host River Oaks in the season opener at 7 p.m. It’s a new year, a new roster, a new team, and it’s time to start making new memories just as good as the old ones.

“We’ve tried to preach to our guys all summer that last year is over with. We don’t have last year’s team. What we did last year, as great as it was, we’re a new team and this is a new year. Nothing we did last year is going to win us a game this year,” PCA coach Blake Purvis said. “We’ve got to start fresh, we’ve got to start new, and this team this year has to blaze its own trail. They have to leave their own legacy, and that starts this week.”

First up on the schedule is a River Oaks team that is also starting fresh. The Mustangs finished 4-8 last season and then overhauled the roster with a number of transfers from across Northeast Louisiana.

The list includes Kenneth Boston, a 6-foot-8, 300-pound offensive lineman who has committed to Ole Miss. Boston played at Rayville High School last season. Wide receiver DeMarious Burns earned All-District honors at Jonesboro-Hodge High School.

“They’re very good. They’ve picked up some guys. They’ve got really good size up front, obviously. They’ve got a D-I offensive lineman playing up front. Great speed, a lot of guys that when they touch the football can take it the distance, which obviously makes them very hard to defend. In our league that’s usually a pretty good recipe for a lot of success,” Purvis said. “They’re going to be difficult to defend and they’re going to pose a lot of challenges to our personnel as far as matching them in certain positions.”

PCA’s cupboard is not bare. Leading rusher Jase Jung (1,974 yards and 25 touchdowns in 2023) is back, and so are offensive linemen Hunter Simms, Jackson Blackmon and Conley Johnston. A couple of other starters like linebacker Henry Slayton are returning on defense.

It’s a good core for the Eagles to work with as they try to take the next step in their program’s evolution. They’ve won playoff games each of the past two seasons and reached the MAIS Class 2A semifinals last year. PCA won its first 12 games in 2023 before losing to DeSoto School.

The Eagles saw their first live action last week in a scrimmage with Tallulah Academy and Briarfield Academy. Purvis said he saw enough good things to be encouraged, but he also wants to see more of them.

“I saw flashes of good things. I saw capabilities from some of our guys who did things we were thinking they were going to be able to do,” he said. “One thing I thought we lacked was consistency and doing the right things over and over and over again. For our personnel and our team this year, that’s going to be key to us. We’ve got to minimize the mistakes and the mental errors that could be detrimental to a drive or give up a touchdown on the defensive side of the ball.”

RIVER OAKS AT PORTER’S CHAPEL
• Friday, 7 p.m.
• Radio: 104.5 FM